Motorway

Introduction

• Pakistan Motorway Project was originally

conceived by Mr. Muhammad Nawaz
Sharif, to provide a country wide link of
limited access high speed highway to
bring most parts of the country together
which could result in greater economic
growth, commercial activity and trade with
ECO countries.
 Mission
• The mission of the motorway project is to
provide the public with a safe and efficient
country wide transportation system. The
system increases access and mobility,
reduces congestion, improves the
environment, and supports economic
development, thereby enhancing quality of
life.
 Vision
• The vision of the motorway project is to
provide a transportation system that allows
anyone to go anywhere in the region easily
and efficiently.
 Introduction of M-2
• The M-2 is a motorway in the Punjab
province of Pakistan. It is 367 km long and
connects Lahore with Islamabad.
• The M2 was the first motorway completed
in 1998, linking the cities of Islamabad and
Lahore. In the past 5 years, many new
motorways have opened up including the
M1, M3.
 Facts about M-2
Title Lahore-Islamabad motorway
Length 367 km
Type Public
Direction North-South
Start Lahore
Primary destinations Faislabad, Sargodha, Rawalpindi
End Islamabad
Location Pakistan
Construction dates 1992 - 1997
Major junctions M-3

Owner NHA Pakistan

Cost Rs. 30.5 billion.
 Initialization
• The construction of motorways began in
the early 1990s with the idea building a
world class road network and to reduce
the load off the heavily used national
highways throughout the country.
 Planning
• The proposed Pakistan Motorway project was
approximately 3000 km long network of access
controlled, signal free highways.
• Key considerations included:
• Transport network performance
• Accessibility and opportunity for public transport
and other transport modes
• Local area accessibility and connectivity
• Social impact
• Environmental impact
• Engineering feasibility and construction staging
 Planning
The criteria used to evaluate the options included:
• Motorway operations
• Sufficient through lane and interchange capacity
• Appropriate interchange and ramp spacing
• Motorway access only via interchanges with
major roads
• High quality road design standards
• Operational efficiency
• Connections with the local road network
• Access to major centers
• Environmental impacts
 Execution
• It was a massive project involving 3 major river
bridges, 8 interchanges, 27 flyovers, 17 bridges
on canal, 39 bridges on drains and 4 overhead
railway crossings
• The project was approved by the National
Highway Council headed by the Prime minister
of Pakistan in 1992.
• 60 percent financing was done by the
Government of Pakistan and 40 percent
financing through foreign loans.
• The project was completed in December 1997
at an estimated cost of Rs. 30.5 billion.
 Ending
• The M2 was the first motorway completed
in 1998.
• The project was completed sucessfully.
• It had the following benefits and
deficiencies.
 Benefits of the Project

• The Lahore-Islamabad motorway is

beneficial for Pakistan as it improves the
socio economics condition of the country.
• It reduces congestion from GT road.
• Saves time.
• Saves fuel.
 Deficiencies of the project

•      Neglecting to do the EIA:

Environmental Impact Assessment
report of the project required under
section 8 of the then in vogue Pakistan
Environmental Protection Ordinance,
1983 was neither prepared nor
subjected to any review/approval
process at the time of initiation,
construction or even at completion
stage of the project.
 Deficiencies of the project
    Consequences are adverse
irreversible impact: This motorway
passes through the agricultural belt of
the province of Punjab and is
associated with several positive and
negative impacts on the life of the
people living in the urban and rural
areas along the motorway.
• Financial resources diverted.