KARACHI: The Institute of Architects Pakistan (IAP) has listed 19 reasons and concerns about the proposed Elevated Expressway (EE) that the CDGK plans to build over the M.T. Khan Road / Shahrah-e-Faisal corridor, according to a press release Tuesday. On Feb 24, the CDGK is holding a briefing on the project at the AKU at 10:30 a.m., the IAP’s Amina Nasim Jan told Daily Times.

According to the press release, the architects and planners are not against development; in fact their business thrives with the development in the country but Shahrah-e-Faisal which has been there since before Partition was never designed to support an elevated expressway.

The project proposes to construct a 24km long, 4 lane expressway which will stretch from Jinnah Bridge at Keamari to Quaidabad in Malir. Vehicles will be required to pay a toll. There will be six entry and exit points; Quaidabad, Star Gate, Karsaz, Shahrah-e-Quaideen, Hotel Metropole, and Jinnah Bridge. The EE will be high enough to clear the existing overpasses and will have toll plazas at intermediate levels at the six entry/ exit nodes. There have been very limited public hearings on this project.

Several prominent members of the architectural and engineering communities have expressed their reservations but their concerns have been brushed aside in the rush to initiate this project in the name of development and foreign investment.

The IAP believes that there are several reasons why this project is conceptually flawed and unfeasible: The EE is being developed to ease the current and projected load on Shahrah-e-Faisal. The project does not take into account the alternative route and the relief that will be provided by the Lyari Expressway nor does it consider any different corridors to divert traffic off of Shahrah-e-Faisal.

The EE is proposed to be a high-speed link for freight and passenger traffic between the airport, Karachi Harbour and the Port Qasim. Realistically, there is very limited traffic between the airport and the two ports. Instead there is much greater freight traffic between the ports and the rest of the country, adequately serviced by the Northern Bypass.

It is also not correct to refer to the EE as the Southern Bypass as has been suggested because it bypasses nothing and ploughs through the densest and most valuable real estate in Karachi. The EE also does not service any of the industrial estates of Karachi. There is no direct access to the EE from Korangi, SITE and North Karachi except through residential neighbourhoods. These areas are much better served by the Northern Bypass and the National Highway.

The project proposes to place a limited access high-speed expressway over the alignment of Shahrah-e-Faisal and M.T. Khan Road. This would mean that the expressway would have the same constraints and limitations as Shahrah-e-Faisal and M.T. Khan Road and will hardly allow expressway speeds. For example, the expressway will travel over the Bridge at PIDC, squeeze between Hotel Pearl Continental and Hotel Sheraton; curve around Hotel Metropole and past Hotel Avari.

By adding the EE, the volume of traffic that can be handled by the Shahrah-e-Faisal corridor may be doubled but the roads leading into Shahrah-e-Faisal and away from it will remain the same. This will create major congestion on roads feeding Shahrah-e-Faisal. An EE is an expensive and inefficient response to the city’s traffic problems. When the volume exceeds the capacity of the EE, it will not be possible to widen it. Therefore, this project will have much shorter productive life span than an on-grade highway.

The EE is being proposed as a 4 lane highway with two lanes traveling in either direction (The 6-lanes claimed in CDGK publications includes entry and exit lanes). There is no provision for a shoulder or emergency lane. A breakdown or accident on the expressway will result in traffic jams of monumental proportions, with no escape for vehicles and no access for fire tenders or ambulances except from the six exit points.

The placement of the six entry and exit points is not rationally based on the requirements of the city’s traffic but rather on the limited space available for entry and exit ramps and toll plazas. For example, there is no entry or exit at Jinnah Airport. Airport traffic will exit the EE at Star Gate intersection and merge with Shahrah-e-Faisal traffic till the JIA intersection. There is no interchange at either Rashid Minhas Road or FTC. Residents of Gulshan-e-Iqbal and DHA would have to exit earlier and merge with Shahrah-e-Faisal traffic.

The proposed Master Plan 2020 calls for the development of multiple nuclei, i.e. additional business districts at different locations throughout the city to reduce commuting time and pressure on our roads and other resources. The goal of this proposal is to decrease the dependence on Saddar. This is a commendable proposal in the Master Plan. The EE tends to contradict this goal of the Master Plan as it seeks to concentrate more traffic into Saddar. If this money were applied instead to develop a Central Business District in Port Qasim it would open up jobs there and reduce traffic to Saddar.

Lastly, the increase in the number of cars on the roads in Karachi is not a valid justification for the construction of new highways. The city should not be fascinated by the notion of having an elevated expressway as if such a thing is an achievement that heralds Karachi’s elevation to a ‘mega city’. Elevated expressways are usually the failure of urban planning because they indicate that a city has failed to manage its traffic problems through less dense, less expensive, on-grade solutions.

The construction of the EE will ruin one of the most attractive boulevards in Karachi. Trees along Shahrah-e-Faisal will be lost. It will effectively place a roof over the existing roadway, cutting off sunlight and breezes. Anyone wanting to imagine the ambience of the resulting roadway need only stand under the NIPA flyover or the Liaquatabad Flyover and imagine it extending for 24km.

The increased traffic load on the Shahrah-e-Faisal corridor and the construction of the EE will greatly increase the levels of emissions. The expressway perched above Shahrah-e-Faisal will trap pollution and prevent it from dispersing.

The EE passes through the heart of Karachi’s thriving commercial, business and tourist districts. Much of its length is over Shahrah-e-Faisal which was recently designated as a corridor for high rise commercial development. After its completion, traffic on the EE will whiz past the third and fourth floor of these buildings. The high walls of these building will create a canyon-like effect which will trap pollution and amplify noise. The EE will obscure the facades of every building that it will cross, greatly hinder people’s access and will depreciate real estate values.

The price tag for the EE has grown from the initial US$225 million through $250 million to $350 million (Rs 21b). Figures much higher than these have been quoted by independent sources. The feasibility of this project depends on the recovery of the cost through tolls.

The EE project is expected to cost $350 million or Rs 21 billion. The developer is expected to recover their investment by collecting tolls from all vehicles over the first 20 years of its life. This means that the operator will need to collect Rs 1,050,000,000 per year or more than Rs 2,876,000 per day. If the average toll per vehicle per trip is set at Rs 20 that would amount to 143,835 cars per day using the expressway. Divided between the six entry/exit points, that amounts to almost 24,000 cars per exit per day or one car every 3.6 seconds. It would seem unlikely that the CDGK’s financial claims about this project will be realized. In which case the foreign developer of the project will claim the CDGK’s sovereign guarantee.

The construction of the EE will cause severe hardship to the residents of Karachi particularly to the businesses located on Shahrah-e-Faisal. The construction time of 30 months appears to be too optimistic considering the usual pace of construction in Pakistan (foreign developer notwithstanding). The CDGK has not shared any plans with the citizens of Karachi on how it plans to achieve these diversion plans during the construction period and which adjacent neighbourhoods will be affected.

Shahrah-e-Faisal is the main access route to the airport and is heavily used for the movement of VVIP’s. How will this access be maintained during construction? What diversionary routes will be used for VVIP traffic at added security risks? There have been no public hearing held to discuss this with residents and businesses along the Shahrah-e-Faisal / M.T. Khan Road corridor.

The EE is not the only solution to the traffic problems of Shahrah-e-Faisal. After its completion, The Lyari Expressway will handle a large volume of traffic currently accessing Shahrah-e-Faisal from the north. The IAP proposes two alternatives: develop an on-grade highway along the Malir River bed and; develop the under-construction road through the Korangi Industrial Area into an expressway. Both proposals can be connected laterally across the Malir River to Shahrah-e-Faisal which will provide a natural detour during VVIP movement. This will allow citizens living south of Shahrah-e-Faisal to use this expressway instead. Both proposals can be connected to Karachi Harbour through limited access corridors through DHA. 

(Daily Times-B1, 21/02/2007)

KARACHI, Feb 9: President General Pervez Musharraf has said that Pakistan is moving forward on the path of progress and prosperity.

He was speaking at the ground breaking ceremony of the Karachi Elevated Expressway held at the Governor's House here on Friday. The expressway is being built to link National Highway and Jinnah Bridge.

The president described it a great project as the 24-kilometre elevated expressway would help ease traffic congestion and ensure safety during travel.

Pakistan is moving forward in every sphere – economic and development, social sector, health and education -- as well as political sector, and introducing sustainable democracy, empowerment of women and minorities, etc.

He noted that the country was making headway because the economy had been set right which led to the accelerated developmental activity.

Gen Musharraf pointed out that from 1988 to 1999, the development budget of the country was between Rs60 billion and Rs80 billion per annum which had now gone up to Rs415 billion.

"That is why, the government has been able to take up development projects in Sindh, Balochistan, NWFP and other parts of the country."

The president said that the only threat the country faces was from terrorism, extremism and sectarianism and if we did not correct this situation, we would not be able to sustain the economic growth.

He said that Pakistan had a standing in the comity of nations, in the Islamic Ummah and in the world. "People seek our views and our support," he added.

Gen Musharraf said: "Our standing in the comity of nations will not be there in case we do not eradicate intolerance, extremism and sectarianism from our society. The strategy which we are pursuing will enable us to tackle the problem of terrorism."

Economic prosperity is gauged by the things such as the availability of energy, and Pakistan is suffering from electricity and gas shortage. This is a sign of development and we will take steps to meet this challenge. The other sign of development is traffic congestion. In Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad, roads are so broad but even in Islamabad, the traffic is chocked today and, therefore, flyovers, overhead bridges and underpasses are being constructed.

Gen Musharraf pointed out that some five years back, the production of cars in the country was about 35,000 while the figure had now gone up to 250,000. The production of motorcycles which was 85,000 at that time had also crossed the 800,000 mark, he added.

He said that this was the boom in the purchasing power of people who are buying more cars and motorcycles which, he pointed out, was also a sign of development.

The President said the projects under the Karachi Development Plan were started some four or five years back in which the corporations of this city contributed while the federal, provincial and district governments also participated.

He also lauded the role of Sindh governor and chief minister for supporting all these projects. He also appreciated the energetic Nazim of Karachi Syed Mustafa Kamal.

In the context of the massive development, the president made mention of the mega projects like Northern Bypass, Lyari Expressway and the 100-MGD water supply project, as well as the construction of Quaid's mausoleum park, Bagh Ibne Qasim, Askari Park at Old Sabzi Mandi and the beautification along the beach.

He said the short- and mid-term steps were being taken by Karachi Electric Supply Corporation to improve electricity supply in the metropolis.

The president said that that the Federal Minister for Ports and Shipping Babar Khan Ghauri was also doing a lot for the development of Karachi, and added that a bridge was being constructed up to Manora (Island). A number of projects were coming up for Karachi, he said.

Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ibad, Chief Minister Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim and Managing Director of the IJM Corporation Dato Krishnan Tan Boon Seng also spoke on the occasion.

(Dawn, February 10, 2007)

In spite of the widespread criticism that it has received since it announced the project, the City District Government Karachi has elected to plough ahead with the proposed elevated expressway along the M. T. Khan–Sharea Faisal corridor. The criticism has come equally from the planning and design community as from other stakeholders and citizens. The CDGK has single-handedly conceived of this massive infrastructure undertaking, without fully understanding the complex dynamics of the traffic problems in Karachi and has proposed to solve the perceived problem with a single stroke which will rend a gash through the fabric of the most vital and commercially viable parts of the city.

In spite of the fact that it administers only about 34 per cent of the city of Karachi, the CDGK has none the less taken it upon itself to supposedly solve the traffic problems of the entire city. The elevated expressway promises to relieve the traffic congestion on Sharea Faisal as well as provide a southern bypass for heavy freight traffic travelling from Karachi Port to the National Highway. In the administrative patchwork that characterises the city of Karachi any expressway project should be conducted through the collaboration of all affected agencies. It is therefore curious that even though the current southern truck route from Karachi Port to the National Highway runs through DHA, the CDGK has taken it upon itself to alleviate this problem at its own cost and environmental risk. It seems oddly magnanimous of the city nazim.

Last month, in conformance with the requirements of the Pakistan Environmental Protection Act, the CDGK submitted an Environmental Impact Assessment Report to the Sindh Environmental Protection Agency. A study of this two volume, 264-page document reveals that it is full of unsupported assumptions, general statements and irrelevant data. The report is largely intended to fulfil a legal requirement and it provides little concrete information about the environmental impact of the project or any cogent steps for avoiding or mitigating this environmental damage.

According to the report, the elevated expressway will in effect place an 18 metre wide canopy over the entire length of the M T Khan Road–Club Road–Sharea Faisal corridor, partially or completely covering -- depending on its width -- the at-grade roadway. The width of the right of way (ROW) of the resultant elevated expressway and the at-grade road varies from 23 metres where the road is tight and can only allow two lanes, two-way traffic, to 39 metres where four lanes, two-way traffic is possible below the elevated expressway. At the exit points, the space for ramps and tollbooths push the width of the ROW to over 50m. The height of the clearance of the expressway will vary from 5.4 metres to more than twice that to clear existing flyovers.

In order to achieve this ROW widening exercise, the CDGK hopes to acquire "very small" strips of land at intervals along the entire length to "redefine the ROW". Specifically, this means acquisition of land from the Bahria Complex, Pakistan Central Cotton Committee, the PC hotel, Karachi Gymkhana, Qasr-e-Naz and the State Guest House, Sindh Club, Hotel Avari and the Quaid-e-Azam House! The "very small" strips of land add up to nearly 15 acres.

Shahrah-e-Faisal was never planned as a high-speed expressway corridor. A pre-partition route, it is pinched in many places and often crowded by new and old buildings. The elevated expressway will follow the alignment of this corridor. Along its length the elevated expressway will fly over the old Lover's Lane Bridge at PIDC, squeeze between the PC and Sheraton hotels, crowd past Shafi Court, Hotel Metropole, Hotel Avari, Quaid-e-Azam House and Hotel Mehran. It is expected that the ride on the elevated expressway will have the feel of a gentle roller coaster.

The worst condition is along Club Road between PIDC and Hotel Avari. Here the narrowness of the existing roadway will effectively create a tunnel. The EIA report admits that the construction here "will be problematic since it may require the removal of existing landscape features … followed by appropriate restoration of landscape." The "existing landscape features" refers to the giant trees that have lined Club Road in front of Karachi Gymkhana ever since the British laid out the modern city of Karachi.

The "appropriate restoration of landscape" must mean plastic potted plants because nothing else will thrive in the tunnel. The expected air pollution levels here are so high that the report recommends that "the impact would be suitably mitigated by an exhaust system such as those provided in tunnels or underground transport systems." The report also mentions that the "problem is now compounded" by the addition of a VVIP exit ramp on Club Road in front of the DCO office." As if we had any doubt who this project is really intended for. It is unclear how this will impact the city's three leading hotels or the normally moribund tourist industry.

The rest of the corridor does not fair much better. The construction of the expressway will most certainly result in the destruction of all trees and vegetation on the median of M T Khan Road and Sharea Faisal. The vegetation on the median is dismissed as mostly "hedges which are not radiation sensitive" even though the accompanying table lists nearly 1,100 surveyed trees on the median including 242 neem trees. After construction the CDGK proposes to replace these mature trees with "vegetation that survives under low levels of solar radiation".

I guess that would consist of ferns and mushrooms. The EIA report 'infers' "that the vegetation in the . . . sides will not be impacted by the construction . . . ." This is factually incorrect since the realignment of the ROW to accommodate the structure of the expressway and especially the toll plazas at the exits will not only result in destruction of trees but will probably also impact sidewalks, service lanes and parking. Interestingly, all the trees surveyed along the corridor are either between five and seven feet in height or taller than seven feet -- as if the surveyor was handicapped by an inadequately small measuring tape. This is statistical nonsense because it underplays the actual sizes of the many mature trees along the route.

The issue of the noise and air pollutions is dealt with in an equally cavalier manner. The results of a recent air quality study are quoted and it is concluded that the accumulated air pollution will disperse to acceptable levels within 50 metres. Unfortunately, along much of its length the expressway is hemmed in by tall commercial properties and does not have the luxury of the required space for dispersal. There is no mention of the pollution levels under the expressway. No samples were taken under any of the existing flyovers in the city. However, a recent study by PEPA on the nitrogen dioxide (NO2) levels in different parts of Karachi shows the Karimabad intersection having NO2 levels four times higher than the worst industrial areas of the city. The only thing unique about Karimabad intersection is that it sits under the Liaquatabad flyover.

There is much more self-serving justification in the EIA report but what is clear is that the CDGK is proposing to commit an atrocity in our city. This obscene rush to acquire the worst accoutrements of big cities is going to result in permanent irreparable damage to the urban fabric of this city. It is up to the citizens of Karachi to speak up at the EPA public hearing on the third of April and reject this project.

(By Arif Belgaumi, The News, 03/04/2007)

Like the National Monument in Islamabad and the KPT Port Fountain in Karachi, is the Karachi Elevated Expressway (KEE) a grandiose and pretentious symbol to establish that Pakistanis are second to none?

Or, like other mega-projects in this country that are a common substitute for far-sighted and intelligent planning, will it generate tape-cutting photo opportunities and colourful newspaper supplements in a lead-up to the general elections?

We can be sure though, as per the old chestnut of economics: ‘There is no such thing as a free lunch’, that the cost of the “annuity basis” project (US$ 225 million in March 2006, rising to US$ 350 million in September 2006, and peaking at an unknown figure if completed) will come out of the citizens’ pockets.

The city government’s stated reason is “to facilitate speedy movement/flow of traffic by creating an efficient and cost-effective system for motorists, including commercial and heavy vehicles.”

Admirable and desirable motives, efficiency and cost-effectiveness. But there is little evidence that the requisite detailed studies, examination, and analysis of alternatives has been undertaken to arrive at the optimum “efficient” and “cost-effective” solution. The scheme seems to be a ‘shoot-from-the-hip’ attempt to address a genuine problem.

Firstly, it seems obvious that the introduction of discipline into the wild and wooly traffic and related practices of Karachi will increase manifold the traffic-handling capacities of the existing roads.

Could this increase be 100 percent? Could it be 200 percent? Could it be 500 percent? How much faster and smoother will traffic move if we are able to get away from the prevalent ‘law of the jungle’ and the ‘survival of the fittest’ strategies in traffic management?

What would be the cost of introducing such traffic discipline? Would it be US$ 350 million? Even it were, wouldn’t the benefit accrue to motorists all over Karachi and not only on the Shahrah-e-Faisal corridor, surely a much more “efficient” way to spend the citizens’ money? If one wants to understand what kind of people live in a country, one must stand at a central intersection of a major city and observe the movement of traffic.

You will appreciate the state of education, the level of common courtesy, the state of writ of law, the intensity of aggression of motorists, the discipline of the pedestrians, etc. In a nutshell, you will experience the character of the “natives”.

Some of the issues of road and traffic regulation that were identified during the KEE public hearing (detailed objections to the Environmental Impact Assessment made by the Institute of Architects, Arif Hassan, Shehri: Citizens for a Better Environment, and Pearl Continental Hotel can be viewed at www.shehri.org) were as follows.

First, the enforcement of traffic discipline: Traffic confusion is exacerbated by absence of lane markings, non-use of bus-lanes/stops, slow traffic occupying fast lanes, frequent switching of lanes (especially motorcycles) without signaling, speeding, not stopping at the red-light or at stop signals, stopping in the middle of the road, jay-walking, inadequate pedestrian crosswalks/overhead bridges, vendors/beggars at intersections, and the like.

Addressing these will slash wastage of fuel, cut health-endangering vehicle pollution, reduce congestion, improve safety, and save man-hours and mental stress in needless traffic jams. Second, the relocation of criticalactivities: Many vehicle trips would become unnecessary if markets and warehousing were re-sited to more appropriate locations. Is the citizenry aware that oil pumped from bulk storage at Keamari, through Clifton and DHA to the National Refinery in Korangi, is refined and pumped back to Keamari! Tankers are then loaded at the port and traverse the city roads on their way upcountry! The simple alternative of a loading terminal on the Superhighway has eluded the city administration for decades.

Third, the enforcement of non-peak timings for heavy traffic: Tankers, trucks and other heavy vehicles must only be allowed to use designated city roads outside normal working/peak hours and on holidays. This policy is presently weakly implemented.

Fourth, parking discipline: Commercial areas and school locations (which are springing up all over the city in violation of town-planning laws) generate parking chaos on the roads, thus reducing traffic capacity. This is very common on Sharah-e-Faisal, especially in the sections between Sharah-e-Quaideen Flyover and Awami Markaz, and between the airport and Quaidabad. As mandatory parking spaces in buildings are illegally converted to commercial and storage uses, cars are parked two and three deep on many roads in Saddar, off Chundrigar Road, PECHS, etc.

Fifth, the removal of encroachments: Thelawallas, rehris, khokas, street-vendors, generators, and other encroachments occupy pedestrian pavements and roads, reducing their traffic-handling capacity and forcing citizens to hazardously walk in the path of traffic.

Sixth, the proper signals & traffic control: The existing capacity of Shahrah-e-Faisal and other thoroughfares can be significantly increased by cleverly engineered and coordinated traffic-signal systems, including provision for standby supply during KESC failures.

In Karachi, indeed in Pakistan, we tend to take the easy way out. For example, if ‘A’ publicly threatens ‘B’s life, the government will provide ‘B’ with a police guard; ‘A’ is too “powerful” to be taken up under law. If the solution to traffic snarls is to construct elevated expressways, we need many in Saddar and other choke points. How long can this country keep going sans the writ of law?

Is it possible to tackle the traffic issues of Karachi without a cheap and efficient system of public/mass transport? Again, with our Rolls Royce type of thinking, we believe that below grade subways or elevated trains are the only solutions.

Efforts to revive (and eventually extend) the Karachi Circular Railway, and link it up with a well-planned network of CNG buses to interconnect with the rest of the city have not generated sufficient political enthusiasm, perhaps because it is too simple and cheap a way out, without the potential for large kickbacks. The KEE is supposed to address port (KPT and PQA) traffic: wouldn’t this traffic also be better served by the underutilised but cheap form of mass transit, the Pakistan Railway?

Karachi’s planners and decision makers, like Dehli, Nairobi, Vancouver, and many other cities, must consult Enrique Penalosa, the former mayor of Bogot·, Colombia, who is widely credited for setting that city of seven million on a course of sustainable development. When Penalosa first began his radical strategies in 1998, his approval rating hovered around 15 percent. When his term ended three years later, he was hailed as one of Colombia’s rising political stars.

A 2006 Canadian press report tells the story: “Enrique Penalosa presided over the transition of a city that the world—and many residents—had given up on. Bogota had lost itself in slums, chaos, violence, and traffic. During his three-year term, Penalosa brought in initiatives that would seem impossible in most cities, even here in the wealthy north. He built more than a hundred nurseries for children. He built 50 new public schools and increased enrolment by 34 percent. He built a network of libraries. He created a highly-efficient, “bus highway” transit system. He built or reconstructed hundreds of kilometres of sidewalks, more than 300 kilometres of bicycle paths, pedestrian streets, and more than 1,200 parks.

He did it all, in part, by declaring a war on private cars. “What are our needs for happiness?” he asked. “We need to walk, just as birds need to fly. We need to be around other people. We need beauty. We need contact with nature. And most of all, we need not to be excluded. We need to feel some sort of equality.” Before you dismiss Penalosa as some hemp-hatted revolutionary, remember that this is a guy who titled his first book ‘Capitalism: The Best Option’.

The problem in Bogota was that most people didn’t have access to the public space that is supposed to make such happy things happen. The wealthy had turned city sidewalks into parking lots for cars. Public parks had been fenced off, essentially privatised by neighbours. And for years, the government had been blowing its budgets on highways and road improvements, with the encouragement of Japan’s international development agency, which was apparently in the business of creating new markets for Japan’s carmakers. So while the wealthy in Bogota could spend their weekends in country clubs or private gardens, the poor had little but jammed streets and televisions to occupy their leisure time. Penalosa resolved to establish a balance.

Penalosa’s official ‘War on Cars’ began when he ordered the sidewalks cleared of cars. That triggered a movement to impeach him —-unsuccessful, since it was in fact illegal for people to park on the sidewalks. He then launched a system, based on the number plate of the car, which banned 40 percent of vehicles from the roads during rush hour. Penalosa convinced his city council to raise the tax on gasoline, and used half the revenues to fund a rapid bus system (‘transmilenio’) that now serves more than 500,000 citizens.”

Penalosa said “We had to build a city not for businesses or automobiles, but for children and thus for people. Instead of building highways, we restricted car use. ... We invested in high-quality sidewalks, pedestrian streets, parks, bicycle paths, libraries; we got rid of thousands of cluttering commercial signs and planted trees… All our everyday efforts have one objective: Happiness.”

While some may consider all the suggestions made above to be difficult to implement and unrealistic, do we have any other sensible options? If we are to survive and prosper as a nation, we must solve our burgeoning urban issues, including traffic. Implementation of straightforward people-friendly and environment-friendly measures in this field will ensure a trickle-down effect to other areas of public life.

The KEE fiasco has presented the city government, the planners and the citizens of Karachi with a not-to-be missed opportunity: take stock of your citywide public spaces and traffic issues, and generate the political will to develop simple traffic discipline and an economical public transport system.

(By Ronald DeSouza, The News-20, 17/04/2007)

If the City District Government of Karachi is to be believed, the planned Karachi Elevated Expressway, to be built in the city's busy business district, will be the best thing to happen for the country's commercial capital. However, the project has earned the severe disapproval of a wide array of architects, environmentalists, engineers and a section of civil society. Their views, expressed at a public hearing organised by the provincial environmental protection department last week, make eminent sense given that the planned project will see an elevated expressway running along Karachi's primary thoroughfare -- Sharea Faisal -- for 25 kilometres, connecting the central business district with the city's outskirts, to the north of its airport. Not only will its construction cause massive disruption to the city's traffic system -- already close to a mess on any given day -- it will be an environmental nightmare and an aesthetic monstrosity. Besides, the choice of an elevated expressway seems a bit odd since the trend all over the world nowadays seems to rely on relatively more environmentally-friendly approaches such as building a subway or improving the whole system of traffic by greater monitoring and regulation of private vehicles and introduction of alternative forms of transport. In fact, the planned route of this particular project is such that it will mar the view of many of the city's major buildings and neighbourhoods, since many lie on or straddle Sharea Faisal.

If the project does go ahead, it also involves several private sector organisations, including some of the city's leading hotels, parting with some of their land (presumably in exchange for compensation). However, and understandably so, the hotel owners have already objected to the project, saying that the last thing their guests needed was to see a massive concrete structure blocking the view from their room's window. One primary argument being used by the backers of the elevated expressway is that it will bring in foreign investment and presumably the government will not be paying much out of its pocket to fund it. However, this approach by the federal and provincial governments in Pakistan needs to be modified because projects should not be blindly built just because they bring in large amounts of foreign investment. Instead, the environmental and long-term effects of these projects should also be considered when such decisions are made, particularly the views and opinions of all stakeholders, especially those who are to be directly affected by a project's construction and eventual completion. Not only that, in this particular instance, once built, the expressway will charge tolls for use so to say that there will be no cost to the general public is entirely misleading.

As for the environmental impact, the CDGK is almost dismissive of such concerns. Its version of the public hearing, which is available on its website, suggests that a decision has already been made to disregard the concerns expressed by civil society to the project with the hearing portrayed as one where it was successfully shown that the expressway would have no adverse environmental impact. Surely, such a stance does not help and only reveals that the CDGK considers the whole process of conducting an environmental-impact assessment (as required by law and pending whose approval no construction can begin) of the project as nothing more than a formality. Also, the project shows a distinct lack of priorities in that the city does not have a fully functioning solid waste management and garbage collection system and its government has ambitions to make an elevated expressway stretching some 25 kilometres. More consideration needs to be given to all those who have disapproved of this idea. It would be better if Sharea Faisal was left alone and if at all such an expressway, linking the city's port with the highways to its north, is to be built, then there are other routes which will cause less social, environmental and aesthetic harm. Also, alternatives such as making the Karachi Circular Rail functional, exploring other rail options and the much-needed streamlining of the overall system of traffic management need to be considered before any hasty decision is made.

(The News, 10/04/2007)