While two mega interchanges worth Rs.8 billion. is under construction in the federal capital, the district administration has decided to construct an additional underpass at the Murree Road-Srinagar Highway junction to ease traffic.

Once completed, this underpass will ensure signal-free traffic flow from Murree and Kashmir to Srinagar Highway. In turn, the 60-day deadline for the completion of the Serena Interchange under construction expired on January 5, but work on the project is still ongoing.

However, the underpass connecting Khayaban-e-Suharwardi towards Aabpara has been completed and is set to open to traffic on January 11. The other ongoing project, the F-8 interchange, was scheduled to be completed in three months by February 5, with one of its underpasses already operational within a record 42 days.

A senior official of the Capital Development Authority (CDA) told The Express Pakinomist that the foundation stone for the two major infrastructure exchanges costing Rs.8 billion was laid by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on November 5. However, due to a week-long delay in providing structural designs, work began on November 12, as a result of which the Serena Interchange project, originally scheduled for completion on January 5, is still in its final stages, he added .

One of its underpasses, which was constructed on the side of Khayaban-e-Suharwardi, was decided to open on January 8 initially, but Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi directed the CDA chairman to open the approach roads for traffic along with the constructed underpasses and no inauguration ceremony will be held, rather the entire construction work of the interchange will be inaugurated at one time by the premier, the official further said.

According to the CDA official, two substructure underpasses on the Islamabad Club side will also be completed by January 20, while full efforts are being made to complete the 100% project by the last week of this month.

On the other hand, CDA Chairman Muhammad Ali Randhawa along with Member Engineering and other senior officers visited Murree Road on Thursday. On this occasion, keeping in mind the traffic problems, the proposal to construct an underpass at Srinagar Highway Junction on Murree Road was considered.

Randhawa said that the construction of the underpass would provide convenience to the citizens coming to Islamabad from Murree and Kashmir and ordered that the underpass at Srinagar Highway Junction on Murree Road should be connected with the Serena Interchange project.

The Chairman was informed in the briefing that the work of soil test has been started for the construction of the underpass at Srinagar Highway Junction on Murree Road. He was further informed that the work of designing and planning including feasibility has also been started for the construction of the underpass at Srinagar Highway Junction on Murree Road.

The CDA chief said that the construction of the underpass would solve the long-standing traffic problems in Islamabad on a permanent basis and ordered that the design of the underpass at Srinagar Highway Junction on Murree Road be submitted soon.

After the construction of the underpass, the entire traffic coming from Murree to Srinagar Highway would become signal free, he added.