Shahrah-e-Faisal
Shahrah-e-Faisal, founded as Drigh Road, is a boulevard in Karachi which was named after Faisal of Saudi Arabia in 1974 after participation of King Faisal in Islamic summit in Pakistan.[1]
It is 18 km (11 mi) long, running from the Bhutto Underpass near Hotel Metropole (24.852799°N 67.034785°E) to the Star Gate (24.886963°N 67.153132°E), near Jinnah International Airport, where it becomes N-5.[2][3]
History
It is not clear when the road was built, however the first Air India flight took off on 15 October 1924, from Karachi's Drigh Road Aerodrome, and the record mentions the road.[4]
In 1974, the road was named after Faisal of Saudi Arabia. It was renamed as Shahrah-e-Faisal after the Islamic summit held in Lahore in 1974 as King Faisal provided financial assistance to re-build the road.[5][6]
In the 1970s, Shahrah-e-Faisal was part of the National Highway and thus belonged to the Government of Sindh.
In the 1980s, the Government of Sindh transferred it to the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation. An estimated 250,000 vehicles use the road daily.[7]
Shahrah-e-Faisal's sound construction and durability are held up as an example among Karachi roads. It has withstood wear and tear because of strict compliance with standards and because of its large number of drainage outlets. It received a major upgrade and extension in the early 1980s.
Development
- 2012 – Solar-powered streetlights are to be installed by Karachi Metropolitan Corporation.[8]
- 2014 – The majority of traffic signals have been removed – only two remain. The conversion into a signal-free road began in 2010.[9]
- 2016 – A new traffic management plan was made.[10]
- 2016 – Rickshaws were banned for causing accidents and traffic problems.[11]
- 2016 – As part of the Karachi Mega Infrastructure Development Projects, sideways, green patches, and footpaths are being constructed.[12]
- 2016 – Karachi Metropolitan Corporation will spend Rs 70 million on the replacement of old bulbs with energy-saving mercury bulbs on roads in Karachi, starting with Shahrah-e-Faisal.[13]
- 2017 – Thousands of trees and hundreds of electric poles have been uprooted by the Local Government Development Project Directorate in order for the road to be widened by 12–15 m (40–50 ft) on both sides. The area from Star Gate to FTC was re-paved by the government of Sindh in Phase I of the Karachi Development Project. A complete overhaul of the Drigh Road Flyover was started after the completion of the Aan underpass.[14]
- 2018 – The area from FTC to Metropole was re-paved at a very fast pace. Construction started on many concrete walls for advertisement after a ban on billboards.
- 2019 - Separate line for motorbikes was made on Sharah-e-Faisal road of about 20 km long to avoid accidents because of motorbikes.[15][16][17][18][19]
Problems
In 1987 Shahrah-e-Faisal had around 30 billboards. By 2014 their number had grown to 140, from Hotel Metropole to Gora Qabristan, earning the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation Rs. 250 million per year. In 2018 the Supreme Court of Pakistan ordered these billboards removed because, over time, several had collapsed in strong winds, killing and injuring a number of people.[20]
The Road Traffic Injury and Prevention Center of Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre showed that at least one person dies, and an average of 83 people are wounded, every day on Karachi roads. Shahrah-e-Faisal is considered to be the deadliest road.[21]
In 2016 the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation decided to demolish the Drigh Road flyover, an engineering disaster that needed multiple repairs since it was built in 1996. This flyover on Shahrah-e-Faisal takes traffic from the airport towards Gulshan-e-Iqbal.[22][23]
References
- https://www.arabnews.pk/node/1474486/pakistan
- The Express Tribune 10 September 2016
- Samaa TV 14 October 2016
- Mid-day 15 October 2015
- https://www.arabnews.pk/node/1474486/pakistan
- Dunya TV 22 February 2017
- The Express Tribune 8 March 2014
- Pakistan Today 10 January 2012
- The News 7 September 2014
- Geo TV 10 September 2016
- Dunya News 16 September 2016
- Daily Times 07 December 2016
- Daily Times 26 December 2016
- Daily Times 27 February 2017
- Reporter, The Newspaper's Staff (17 October 2018). "Separate track along Sharea Faisal for bikers being made". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
- Reporter, Our Staff (17 October 2018). "Separate track for bikes on Shahrah-e-Faisal". nation.com.pk. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
- "Karachi's Sharae Faisal is getting a dedicated bike lane from Metropole to Malir Halt – Samaa Digital". Retrieved 21 December 2019.
- "Separate track for bikes on Shahrah-e-Faisal | Dunya News". video.dunyanews.tv. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
- "Bike lane at Shahra-e-Faisal: civilians fail to follow the law". Home - ARY NEWS. 1 December 2018. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
- Khan, Iftikhar A. (18 October 2018). "SC orders removal of hoardings from public land across country". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 14 May 2019.
- The Express Tribune 9 February 2015
- The Express Tribune 5 June 2016
- The Express Tribune 1 May 2012