Lahore [Pakistan], March 7 : The Punjab government's pilot green-marked bike lane project on Ferozepur Road in Pakistan has been criticized for worsening traffic congestion and increasing accidents, as reported by The Dawn.
The scheme, which aimed to create dedicated lanes for cyclists, has faced backlash due to the installation of hard dividers and bricks that have blocked the road, narrowing it further, the Dawn reported.
According to The Dawn, motorists have called the project a 'flawed' engineering initiative by the Lahore Development Authority (LDA), especially after it was found that bricks were used to separate the lanes. This has led to traffic backups and a rise in accidents, with some reports indicating a 30 per cent increase in crashes compared to previous traffic patterns.
Business owner Arshad Nawaz, who commutes daily from Kahna to Ichhra, pointed out that the poorly placed dividers have contributed to frequent accidents. He also highlighted incidents where broken-down vehicles have blocked lanes, worsening traffic jams from Arfa Karim Tower to Kalma Chowk, the Dawn reported.
A medical student from Allama Iqbal Medical College shared that collisions on Ferozepur Road caused by the green-marked lane have become a regular occurrence, leading to major traffic blockages. "I see two to three accidents happen every day due to the dividers placed on the road," the student said.
The Dawn reported that an auto-rickshaw driver mentioned that certain sections of Ferozepur Road are constantly congested because of the newly installed bike lane. He added, "It used to take me 5-10 minutes to travel from Arfa Karim Tower to Lahore Canal, but now it takes 20-25 minutes because of the bike lane."
According to The Dawn, LDA Director General Tahir Farooq acknowledged the issues and confirmed that the authority is reviewing the project. A technical committee has been formed to examine the complaints, and the LDA is considering replacing the dividers with cat eyes.
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