Work on the Rawalpindi Ring Road has reached 85pc completion, while the Rs4.8 billion PC-1 for the Thallian interchange has been approved. The road is expected to open by mid-June without the Thallian interchange, which will be completed later.
ISLAMABAD: Work on the Rawalpindi Ring Road has reached around 85 per cent completion, while the PC-1 for the Thallian interchange, estimated at Rs4.8 billion, has been approved by the relevant authority, according to details reported on the project.
The total estimated cost of the Ring Road project, including the Thallian interchange, stands at Rs51.4 billion. A two-lane motorway link road beyond the Thallian interchange will be built by the National Highway Authority (NHA).
According to the available details, the Thallian interchange and the motorway link road will be taken up in the second phase of the project and will be opened to traffic at a later stage after completion.
Route work at advanced stage
The 38.6-kilometre Ring Road route includes the Banth interchange, Chak Beli Khan Road interchange, Adiala interchange and Chakri interchange. Work on the route and these interchanges has reached 85 per cent completion.
The Ring Road is expected to be opened for traffic by mid-June, but without the Thallian interchange. The Thallian interchange and the motorway link will become operational only after the NHA completes the remaining construction work linked to that section.
Sources in the Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA), which is executing the project, said funds are available within the overall project cost for the acquisition of additional land required for the Thallian interchange.
Remaining work under way
The same sources said the completion of the project had been delayed because of various ground realities. They added, however, that only 15pc work now remains on the route and the four interchanges.
They also said construction activity is continuing at pace under strict monitoring.
The project is being described by RDA sources as a state-of-the-art scheme, with the main carriageway and key interchanges moving closer to completion. Once opened, the road will initially begin operations without the Thallian interchange, which is to be completed separately in the next phase along with the motorway connection being developed by the NHA.
The latest update indicates that while the principal route is nearing readiness for traffic, the full network connectivity linked to Thallian will follow after the second-phase works are finished.
