Out of order signals and absence of traffic constables at various crossroads of the city leads to violation of traffic signals and consequently to massive traffic jams and accidents.
It has been observed that traffic signals at Double Road Chowk, near Cricket Stadium, usually remain off in the busy morning hours and no traffic constable happens to be there to regulate the traffic. "This causes lots of problems to the commuters and there always remains high risk of accident on the junction as everyone considers his right to move forward," Muhammad Farooq, a commuter said.
The traffic signals are only observed at the main intersections of the city. The signals at Asghar Mall Chowk, Kali Tanki Chowk, Haideri Chowk, College Chowk and Siddique Chowk on Saidpur Road in Rawalpindi are daily violated because no traffic constable is deputed at these intersections.
One can imagine the gravity of the situation by witnessing that sometimes commuters themselves assume the job of traffic constable to regulate the traffic. Thousands of people using this road daily are caught in a mess at these intersections as no one bothers to follow the traffic signals.
A shopkeeper, near Siddique Chowk said that there is a dire need to deploy traffic constables here and if anyone violates the law he should be fined. Fayyaz Naseem, a resident of Satellite Town said, "I have to face severe problems during my daily travel from Rawalpindi to Islamabad."
It is worth mentioning that besides hospitals and clinics several schools lie on this road and a single mistake can lead to a fatal accident, taking life of an innocent at anytime.
Commenting on the attitude of drivers, a Degree College student Ahsan said that it was our duty also to obey traffic rules even if the traffic constable is not present to regulate the traffic. He said, "every commuter seems to be in hurry and no one worries to follow the signal."
A professor of a local college was of the view that concerned authorities should take immediate notice of this situation and deploy constables at these places to save the suffering people from further miseries.