ROADS are considered the face of any city and it is unfortunate that this face has only been allowed to rotten in the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad. The entire road infrastructure is in deplorable condition in the two cities.
Whilst mega road infrastructure projects such as Nullah Leh Expressway and Ring Road projects have been envisaged to ensure smooth flow of traffic in Islamabad and Rawalpindi, nothing is being on the part of relevant authorities to improve the existing infrastructure. The recent monsoon rains have further deteriorated the condition of roads. I. J. Principal Road is the classic example of how poorly the road infrastructure has been handled by the present government over the last two years. It is one of the busiest roads linking the twin cities as well as connecting G.T. Road and Islamabad Expressway. A drive on this major artery really checks the patience of drivers. Massive gridlocks are observed on the road daily as it has developed deep and long patches and ruts. Since the heavy traffic including trailers, trucks and buses ply in large numbers of the road, its condition is worsening with each passing day. Islamabad Expressway also awaits its expansion up to Rawat for a long time. The apathy of the civic body can be gauged from the fact it has no time to fill the ditches that have surfaced on different avenues and the Srinagar Highway. This state of affair is only disappointing the residents of the two cities who had reposed great confidence in the leadership of PTI in the 2018 general election. Heavy responsibility rests with the elected representatives from Islamabad especially Minister for Planning Asad Umar to fulfil the promises he made with the residents of federal capital before the election. The Minister should immediately sit with the officials of Capital Development Authority (CDA) and chalk out a plan for reconstruction and rehabilitation of the road infrastructure, apart from addressing other civic problems faced by the residents. The civic agency has sufficient funds to execute these projects. It is only a matter of awakening the CDA from deep slumber.
