SAHIWAL: Technical flaws and substandard construction have made commuting risky on the Sahiwal-Arifwala road.

According to Rescue 1122 data, between 2017 and 2022, up to 2,636 traffic accidents involving 3,246 people, including 70 deaths, occurred due to uneven up and down tracks of the dual carriageway.

A trapezium drain separating the up and down roads further adds to drivers problems.

Commuters and local and regional transportation firms have long demanded that both sides be the same height and that the drain be replaced with a divider.

A team from the Punjab Highway Department has already cautioned motorists to take precautions while driving.

The 45-kilometre-long route was dualised from 2012 to 2017 by creating an extra lane on the left side of the road. A trapezoidal drain was built between the old and new roads while creating a new carriageway on the left side that was 1.5 feet higher than the existing one. This resulted in two parallel highways, one 1.5 feet higher than the other, separated by a three-foot wide drain. Despite the fact that either side has curving stones on both sides, the drain presents traffic concerns due to the height disparity. When automobiles tumble into the drain, accidents occur.

According to Rescue 1122 statistics, 931 traffic accidents happened in 2022, resulting in 1,017 victims and 12 deaths.

Along the Sahiwal-Arifwala Road, there are 18 public and private oil depots from which oil is supplied to other cities. According to Rescue 1122 data, scores of road accidents occurred where large vehicles and oil tankers derailed off the newly constructed road due to its height relative to the other (old) road.

The height difference is so noticeable that residents along the roadside use the route to dry dung.

According to Muhammad Ali Bukhari, divisional president of the All Pakistan Oil Tanker Association, numerous oil tankers went down the drain.

According to Shafqat Javed, proprietor of a public transportation company in Sahiwal, buses fall down the sewer at night because the higher side’s edge lacks cat eyes. Several areas have missing curve stones. Local transport companies and oil tanker owners have demanded that the chief minister convert the drain into a divider so that the road is made safe. The ongoing wet spell demonstrated that the drain did not accumulate rainwater because rainwater flowed from top to bottom without entering the drain.

The highway executive engineer says he wrote to senior officials for the redressal of grievances and development of safety measures on the road but nothing was done.

A highway department source told Dawn massive funds are required to address the technical flaws and convert the existing drain into a divider form.

Dawn learnt from sources that in the first week of March, Sohail Ashraf, provincial secretary of the Communication and Works, directed the Sahiwal division highway department, to install “curve stones” between both roads instead of removing technical faults at the time of drain construction. Khawar Zaman, chief engineer, did not respond to calls.

Published in Dawn, March 25th, 2023