Potholed Abbottabad roads need urgent repair

ABBOTTABAD: Despite being a major city located at a critical juncture of the Karakoram Highway (KKH), many roads in the Abbottabad city are in a dilapidated condition and have developed potholes.

Though Rs1 billion were spent on the rehabilitation of the city roads under the beautification project, the most damaged road from Sabzi Mandi to Abbottabad Public School was left out. The encroachments were removed several times for widening of the road but traffic jams are a routine affair due to bumpy and damaged road. Rainwater accumulates on this patch of Karakoram Highway, making it difficult for the motorists and pedestrians to traverse through it. The city received rain in the last five days that caused traffic jam on the four kilometers patch on Karakoram Highway.

The district administration and National Highway Authority have launched encroachment campaigns in the last so many years but the issue remained unresolved. The local administration has held several meetings with the departments concerned to control traffic, but lack of coordination hampered the efforts.

When contacted, Commissioner Hazara Division Syed Zaheer-ul-Islam told The News that a proposal had been submitted to the federal government through the National Highway Authority for the repair of the damaged portion of the road. He said the local administration developed this proposal with the coordination of line departments.