In every fast growing city and particularly a metropolis, there is always a need for equally growing infrastructure. Because when the population of a city swells and grows, the residents there expect a steady growth in civic amenities which are in complete synchronisation with the city’s expansion. People need facilities such as housing, education, healthcare, recreation and a dependable road infrastructure in their daily lives.
Hence it is the responsibility of the civic body concerned to respond to these justified expectations of people. But unfortunately, the Capital Development Authority (CDA) of Islamabad has failed to provide these facilities to all its residents. The city with its population of 1.124 million lacks not only housing, sanitation, healthcare facilities but also a safe road infrastructure.
Though the CDA has constructed new avenues in the city during the last few years and increased speed limits for the new and old roads but it has failed to erect safety fences along these roads including Islamabad Expressway, the 7Th Avenue, Kashmir Highway and the 9th Avenue. Hence the civic body, which is solely responsible to provide safe and better road infrastructure to the citizens, has negligently left these roads unfenced which can cause accidents because of uncontrolled access of pedestrians, animals and slow-moving vehicles.
And it is due to absence of safety fence and pedestrian underpasses that animals such as wild boars and pedestrians cross these roads causing serious road hazards for the motorists. The situation becomes particularly dangerous when the motorists have to watch out for wild bores that traverse these roads at night. There have been several deadly accidents because of this nuisance. Wild bores are often seen roaming on roads and around garbage dumps in the residential areas.
“It is dangerous to drive on this road, especially at night. The traffic moves at a very high speed and even a minor mishap can endanger lives,” said Adnan Zeb, a resident. Asad Imran, another resident, said that due to absence of fences on those roads, driving was especially dangerous at night when wild bores were roaming on roads.
He criticised the town planners for leaving those roads along the forests unfenced and putting motorists’ lives at risk. The residents criticised the CDA for not erecting safety fences to stop animals from coming onto the road. “The CDA should erect the fences as well as construct pedestrian underpasses instead of pedestrian bridges”, they said.
Though the CDA has constructed pedestrian bridges near the 7th avenue, Night Avenue and Islamabad Expressway but people— mostly aged ones are unable to use it— have no option but to cross those roads on foot. The authority needs to construct footpaths along broader roads and avenues and set up fences in order to avert road accidents.
A CDA official told Pakistan Today, on the condition of anonymity, that the authority had earlier erected fences on some parts along the Islamabad Highway but some unidentified people stole them. Erecting safety fences on all the major avenues of the city is necessary since without them, old people will not use pedestrian bridges.
It was also learnt that in some areas, the security agencies had not allowed the CDA to build pedestrian underpasses because of security reasons especially along the Islamabad Expressway. The source also disclosed that it was the responsibility of CDA’s engineering wing to address motorists concerns since they were given huge grants for that purpose every year.
