ISLAMABAD: With only a month left in the expiry of its deadline, the Capital Development Authority (CDA) has failed to make substantial progress in a project regarding the expansion of the Islamabad Expressway, with only half of the work so far completed.

The CDA is executing the project from the PWD Interchange to G.T. Road in Rawat. The sluggish pace of the work has impacted its timeline, which ends next month.

“We are desperately waiting to see the completion of this project. Thousands of people face traffic mess on a daily basis. The authority concerned should pay full focus on this project to complete it on an urgent basis to end the sufferings of the public,” said Shafiq Khan, a motorist.

The Expressway is one of the major roads in the federal capital and caters to both light and heavy traffic, particularly between Islamabad and Lahore. The work on its expansion was formally started in September 2021 after the civic agency awarded the contract worth Rs10.9 billion to the Frontier Works Organisation (FWO) for the rehabilitation and expansion of the seven-kilometre portion of the highway, including the Bhandhar Bridge, Japan Road underpass, and Soan Bridge.

Project to miss deadline, may take six more months

As per its PC-I, the project was supposed to be completed in 18 months i.e. March 2024. With only a month left before the deadline ends in March, more than 50 per cent of the work is still not completed.

“Besides the overhauling of the road, there are two major bridges and an underpass on the road… the bridge and the underpass will take some time to complete,” said an engineer of the CDA. Asked about the completion of the project, he said: “The project could be completed in the next six months if the funding remains smooth,” he said.

Another official of the CDA said that the civic agency should pay attention to completing this project on time and ensuring the smooth flow of funding. “I would say, if the CDA is facing a problem with funds, then it should not start any new project till the completion of the Expressway project. The authority should focus on this project for its early completion to end the sufferings of the commuters,” he said.

Under the project, two rigid and two flexible lanes were being constructed on each side of the Expressway. After the PWD, the four-lane highway narrows down to two lanes causing bottlenecks and disrupting traffic daily. But, now the road is being expanded.

Though the cash-strapped CDA, which regularly sells plots in Islamabad to meet its expenses, claims that its fiscal condition is very weak, the civic agency has recently decided to start a new project for the construction of bicycle lanes in the federal capital, which will cost the agency at least Rs2 billion. Similarly, it will also build parking lots for an e-bike service.

Published in Dawn, February 2nd, 2024