Five committees, 619 accidents: Canal Road remains a death trap

FAISALABAD BUREAU —Despite the formation of five technical committees by the divisional administration over the past eight years, the Canal Road has witnessed 619 accidents during the ongoing year, including 129 in October. Most of the accidents took place at bus stops, entry points, bridges and several intersections, raising concerns about the safety of commuters travelling on the busy road.

Thatta Pul has emerged as one of the most dangerous points, with 48 accidents reported in the year, followed by Pipan Wala Bridge, where 32 accidents were recorded, and Kashmir Bridge with 25 accidents. Other accident-prone locations include Char Chak Wala Chowk, Novelty Bridge and Mandi Mor. A resident of Dhudi Wala, Abdul Jabbar, said the original master plan required commuters to use the service lanes alongside Canal Road and access the thoroughfare only through designated entry points.

He alleged that several additional entry points, bridges and access routes had subsequently been created at the behest of influential figures, undermining traffic management and putting commuters at risk. Successive commissioners formed technical committees to address traffic problems on the road, but their recommendations failed to translate into practical measures.

During the tenure of former commissioner Saqib Manan, a technical committee was constituted to improve the traffic flow. His successor, Asif Iqbal, also formed a committee, while former commissioner Silwat Saeed established a technical review committee comprising Faisalabad Development Authority (FDA) officials and engineers from other departments.

However, the recommendations of these committees remained largely unimplemented. Later, former commissioner Raja Jahangir Anwar constituted another technical committee comprising engineers from various departments. It proposed redesigning the Canal Road, following which the FDA submitted an annual development scheme worth approximately Rs1.5 billion to the provincial government.

The scheme has yet to receive approval. Meanwhile, incumbent Commissioner Dr Imran Hamid Sheikh has constituted another committee to review the road infrastructure and propose measures to reduce accidents and improve traffic flow. According to an official statement, the committee will review the remodelling of roads, U-turns and ramps at various locations along the Canal Road to remove traffic bottlenecks and improve commuting conditions.

Headed by the additional deputy commissioner (enforcement), the committee comprises representatives of the FDA, municipal corporation, traffic police and highways department. The FDA has been assigned the responsibility for technical planning and road redesigning.