There is complete breakdown of traffic laws in Karachi. Those who have no regard for orderly life are flouting these laws with utter aversion to civility and faith in jungle laws.
The traffic violation scenes could be seen in the peek hours when people commute in hurry to their work places. As many roads are under construction and traffic on one side of the road is supposed to take a longer route there is plenty of room to show the lawbreaking prowess.
The Business Recorder Road is partly dug and closed for vehicular traffic from the Grumandir roundabout to Lasbela roundabout. This closure of road provides excuse for motorcycle rickshaws, motorcycles and Suzuki vans to violate instruction regarding one-way use of the road and using it to commute between Grumandir and Lasbella Chawk and creating problems for those who commute between Lasbella Chawk and Grumandir roundabout. In other words the road is closed for traffic coming from Grumandir and entering the road leading to Lasbela Chawk.
On both ends of Business Recorder Road, previously known as Patel Para Road, there are traffic police kiosks. Police officials can be seen either sleeping inside these kiosks or enjoying seasonal fruits collected from the nearby shops. At times they can be seen hiding behind the tree at the Lasbela kiosk waiting for public transports or a motorcycles approaching the kiosk. They intercept them, extort money and leave them.
These traffic police officials are oblivious of traffic violations, which take place on the road closed for incoming traffic. There may be some excuse for this traffic rules violation and lenient attitude of the traffic police as the road is under construction and people are forced to break the law.
But what explanation do we have where roads are not under constructions, and where roads are wide enough to accommodate the rowdy rush of vehicular traffic and traffic signs are clearly show what to do and what is prohibited. Signs such as 'no parking', 'no U-turn permissible', no 'horn blowing' and 'no heavy vehicle entry' are pitched but the powerful flout these instructions as if these existed not for them but for other who are sons of the lesser gods.
The busy erstwhile Elphinston Street, and Victoria Street, which give stately look when referred to with their old names, are meant for one-way traffic but motorcyclists and some car owners who have no regards for traffic instructions have converted them into two-way streets. They flout all traffic instructions in the presence of traffic police.
At times there are senior police officials manning vehicular traffic at the intersection of Elphinston Street and Jehangir Park but the traffic rules violators indulge into their activities after ignoring the presence of 'law and order officials'.
Road coming from Ranchor Line, behind Mama Parsi Girls High School, passing through the auto parts market and connecting Gandhi Garden Road was strictly for one way traffic. It has now become the worst example of police inefficiency.
This portion of road is no more a disciplined road. Worst traffic jams created by the flouters of traffic rule could be seen throughout the day as people themselves have converted the road into a two-way traffic road. The police, because it is corrupt and therefore helpless, manage the illegality being committed on this road, instead of checking traffic violations. Many other busy streets have also fallen victim to traffic violators. There are traffic jams, fatal accidents and inconvenience to ambulances because of these rogues.
One who does not live in Karachi asks about the traffic mess and desires to know the reason behind this disregard to traffic laws. At least a plausible explanation is needed to satisfy them. Those who come to select Karachi as a location for business activity defer their decision till they could understand the reason for disobedience of traffic laws. A law-abiding citizen has no answer to this 'mass scale disrespect to law' and for each question from an outsider he has a counter-question to put up with.