Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif chaired a meeting to review the progress of an ambitious project to construct, widen, and rehabilitate 1,471 roads spanning 18,700 kilometers across Punjab. Construction work on 1,214 roads (12,000 km) has been completed, with the remaining sections planned for completion by December.
Punjab has effectively utilized 97% of the allocated highway construction and repair funds. Through efficient management, roads worth Rs. 600 billion have been constructed and repaired for Rs. 70 billion, resulting in an average 20% cost reduction in C and W road contracts for the first time. A shift to a digital toll collection system has been approved as an alternative to traditional contracting, along with the privatization of 29 designated roads, nine of which have been immediately allocated for private sector management.
Elsewhere, construction and rehabilitation efforts for 1,193 buildings, including the first phase of health centers upgrades, have been finalized. Simli General Hospital, Sahiwal Teaching Hospital, and agricultural markets in four urban areas have been completed. PC-1 development in Multan, Bahawalpur, and Sargodha, along with Garment City in Quaid-e-Azam Industrial Park, is nearing completion.
Modern equipment, including road surface profilers, ground penetration radar, and deflectometers, ensures high construction standards for newly built roads. Updates were provided on key projects, including the Quaid-e-Azam Interchange to Wagah tourism route, Pindi Bhattian-Adiala Road overpass, GPO Mall underpass, Kartarpur Corridor, Multan-Vehari additional carriageway, and Faisalabad-Chiniot Road projects.
Three hundred thirteen new roadway projects worth Rs. 255 billion will commence soon. Designs for the Layyah-Bhakkar M-3, M-4 expressway have been approved. Other projects under consideration include Dera Ghazi Khan to Kot Chutta, Muzaffargarh to Alipur Head Punjnad, Khanqah Dogran to Sakhi Sarwar, Mianwali to Dadho Khel CPEC interchange, Housing Colony Chowk to Farooqabad, and Okara-Dipalpur Road projects. The Chief Minister directed that all ongoing highway projects be completed within the fiscal year.
Roadway improvements have been completed in several districts including Jhelum (190 km), Attock (340 km), Sargodha (860 km), Mianwali (220 km), Bhakkar (570 km), Gujrat (360 km), Mandi Bahauddin (230 km), Hafizabad (120 km), Gujranwala (390 km), Sialkot (230 km), and Lahore (40 km). Highway construction has been finalized in Narowal (200 km), Sheikhupura (160 km), Nankana Sahib (190 km), Sahiwal (280 km), Pakpattan (210 km), Faisalabad (620 km), Jhang (370 km), Okara (330 km), Chiniot (180 km), Multan (390 km), Lodhran (140 km), Khanewal (400 km), Vehari (270 km), Bahawalpur (620 km), Bahawalnagar (450 km), Rahim Yar Khan (670 km), Rajanpur (250 km), DG Khan (605 km), and Muzaffargarh (610 km).
Maryam Nawaz Sharif mentioned the long-delayed road construction and acknowledged public satisfaction with the ongoing highway upgrades. She emphasized the importance of utilizing modern technology to ensure quality.