Rawalpindi Ring Road Opening Faces Another Month-Long Delay
The Rawalpindi Ring Road's opening has been pushed back by at least another month as authorities race to finish toll plazas, weighing stations and electronic systems on the Rs50.4 billion project.
The opening of the Rawalpindi Ring Road to traffic has been delayed by at least another month, with construction crews still working on toll plazas and weighing stations, a senior district administration official has said.
According to the official, the provincial government will announce an inauguration date only after the remaining facilities are completed. The official cautioned that the pending work could take a month or longer, meaning motorists will have to wait a while before the road becomes fully operational.
A key part of the outstanding work involves the installation of eight weighing stations designed to measure the weight of heavy trucks and calculate toll charges. The official said the road would open to both heavy and light traffic only after these facilities are operational. Workers are also building toll plaza booths at Baanth and Thalian, while the procurement of the weighing machines has yet to be completed.
The official estimated that constructing the weighing stations would take two to three weeks, after which teams would begin installing the machines. The Punjab Ring Road Authority would then require roughly another two weeks to install the Intelligent Transportation System and Electronic Toll Collection system, with sensors set to weigh trucks and determine their toll charges. Authorities are also establishing the authority's offices and building residential accommodation for officials.
Separately, the official said work on the Thalian interchange would begin once the Ring Road opens to traffic, with completion expected by December. The road has a design speed of 120 kilometres per hour and features six lanes, controlled access, five interchanges and a 90-metre right of way. Its infrastructure includes two bridges across the Soan and Sill rivers, another 12 bridges over various nullahs and roads, a railway bridge near Baanth and 11 overpasses.
The project has cost Rs50.4 billion so far. During the PTI government's tenure, planners had proposed a 68-kilometre Ring Road, but a financial scandal halted work, and authorities subsequently approved a revised 38.3-kilometre alignment.
The further delay means the much-anticipated route, intended to ease traffic congestion in Rawalpindi and improve connectivity with Islamabad, will take longer to benefit commuters and freight operators.
