RAWALPINDI: Work on the construction of pedestrian bridges under the Kutchery Chowkremodelling project started on Monday and is expected to be completed within a month.
RAWALPINDI: Work on the construction of pedestrian bridges under the Kutchery Chowkremodelling project started on Monday and is expected to be completed within a month.
Talking to Dawn, Punjab Highway Department Superintendent Engineer Ashfaq Sulheri said work on the Kutchery Chowk remodelling project resumed after the Eid holidays.
He said work had started on a pedestrian bridge from Rashid Minhas Road (from the FBR building) to Jhelum Road (at the gate of district courts) and a separate bridge from Fatima Jinnah University to the Adiala Road bus stand.
He said these bridges would be interconnected, adding that it was the first state-of-the-art bridge of its kind and a new component of the project to facilitate pedestrians in crossing the main square.
Mr Sulheri said due to the presence of the district courts, the district administration and police offices, there was a dire need to provide easy access for pedestrians to cross the main square without using flyovers, underpasses or ground-level roads.
He said after the remodelling of Kutchery Chowk, more than 250,000 vehicles would pass through the square without signals or congestion while pedestrians would use special bridges.
He said it was expected that the project would be completed within the stipulated timeframe by the end of next month.
“The over Rs19 billion remodelling project is more than 74pc complete. Structures of two flyovers and three underpasses have been completed, more than 50pc of the road work has been carried out and finishing work on the Jinnah Park flyover has started,” he said.
Mr Sulheri said he had visited the site on Monday and the pace of work was satisfactory.
The superintendent engineer said Divisional Commissioner Abdul Aamer Khattak was concerned about the pace of work as, due to road closures, motorists had to take alternative routes. He therefore asked the authorities concerned to complete the work within the stipulated timeframe, Mr Sulheri added.
He said work on drains had almost been completed and rainwater would be collected in sump wells and discharged into nearby nullahs.
The Punjab Highway Department official said these wells would also be used to water green belts along the main square.
He said the Parks and Horticulture Agency had been given a new plan for horticulture of the flyovers and underpasses, and it had started work beginning from Jinnah Park.