KARACHI: The gateway of Karachi, Superhighway area has become a heaven for encroachers and hell for traffic as the Motorway police and local authorities have turned their blind eye to this mess, said Pasban Democratic Party (PDP) Chairman Altaf Shakoor here Sunday.
He said in Karachi the most crippling traffic jams are witnessed on the Superhighway near Suhrab Goth area, where traffic jams are the order of the day. He said traffic to and from the Lyari Expressway remains stranded here for a long duration. He said every sort of encroachments is found here under the patronizing of police and local authorities.
He said the private bus owners have occupied green space between the main highway and service road to make illegal bus terminals that cause traffic jams for hours. He said in some portions the service road simply doesn’t exist and all traffic from heavy trucks to donkey-carts ply on the main highway. He said the whole stretch of Superhighway from Suhrab Goth to Jamali Bridge shows a mess of traffic which often results in deadly traffic accidents. He said recently a professor and his wife died in an accident near the Jamali Bridge.
Altaf Shakoor said that heavy dumpers are parked with impunity on the sides of the main road and the whole service road. At every time of the day dozens of dumpers are found parked here. Despite frequent complaints of the citizens this dumper Adda (terminal) is not being shifted from this very busy area. He said police and anti-encroachment authorities allegedly get bribes from these people and never take action against them.
He said the biggest illegal slum of the whole district East is situated along the Superhighway with several hundreds of huts. This slum is also patronized by the local police and administration. It not only gives an ugly look to this area that is the gateway or entry point of the megacity but also contributes to traffic jams and general crime, especially drug selling. This huge slum must be removed on an emergency basis for the sack of ending crime, narcotics selling and traffic mess in this area.
Altaf Shakoor demanded that the green belt areas of the Superhighway from Suhrab Goth to Jamali Bridge should be vacated from illegal occupation of transporters, truckers, mechanics, reti-bajri sellers, eateries, pushcart vendors and slum dwellers. They should be given alternative spaces away from the main highway if the government deems so fit. Altaf Shakoor said that the Karachi mayor should personally pay a detailed visit to this locality from Suhrab Goth to Jamali Bridge to assess the gravity of the situation.
He said roads near the entrance and exit points of the Lyari Expressway should be widened by adding new lines. There is ample land available for the purpose but it needs removal of encroachments and placing barriers so that pushcart vendors, rickshaws and other vehicles may not occupy this space. He said new flyovers should be built in the area to ensure smooth flow of traffic. He said service roads on both sides of Superhighway should be made functional and the green belts between the main track and service roads vacated from transporters and other encroachers on an emergency basis.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024