Pakistan's Longest Motorway M5 to Boost Road Transport Sector

[Riaz Haq]

Recent opening of M5, Pakistan's longest access-controlled motorway, is a boost for the nation's fast-growing road transport sector. The 6-lane 392 kilometers long M5 motorway is longer than than the 375 kilometers long 6-lane M2 motorway. After M5 opening, the only missing section in planned 1,694 kilometer long 6-lane Peshawar-Karachi motorway is 296-kilometer Sukkur-Hyderabad M6 motorway. Growing network of high-speed motorways is opening up less developed parts of the country for investment, business and tourism. It is aiding agriculture, trade and commerce by moving freight and people faster. Transport sector is part of the service sector which constitutes 54% of the national economy. Service sector includes education, health, financial services, legal services, communication services, hotels, restaurants, recreation, entertainment, retail and wholesale, personal services, etc. It is growing faster than industry (26%) and agriculture (20%) sectors. 

Here's a brief overview of Pakistan's road transport sector as summarized by Karandaz research:

1. The Transport, Logistics and Communications (TLC) sector is estimated to have contributed 13.3% of GDP in 2016-17. Of this, more than 62% was contributed by the road transport sector. In 2014-15 the sector employed 3.1 million people.

2. Most traffic intensive routes are a) Karachi to Peshawar via Hyderabad-Multan-Faisalabad-Rawalpindi; b) Sukkur to Quetta; c) Karachi to Quetta via the RCD Highway; and d) N-5 National Highway segment of Multan-Lahore-Gujranwala-Rawalpindi.

3. Passengers and freight are the primary segments of road transport sector. The fastest growing freight segment is the delivery vans at 7.5% annually, while for the passenger segment it is motor cabs and taxis at 5.9% annually.

4. Road transport grew at an average rate of 6.2% annually between 1991 and 2016, faster than the average GDP growth rate 4.4% during this period. China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is expected to accelerate transport sect or growth with construction of roads and other transport infrastructure.

5. Freight transport sector is highly lucrative with profit margins ranging from 21% for large trucks to 43% for rickshaws. Passenger transport sector is even more lucrative with 30% profit margin for wagons to 50% for luxury buses.

Here's a video of Uch Sharif service area on M5 Sukkur-Musltan Motorway:

https://youtu.be/NC6J8YRAJS4

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[Riaz Haq]

Here's the latest Census data on modes of #freight #transport in #US. #Trucks ($10.4 trillion) claim humongous market share. #Rail only 250 billion. https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2021/02/what-is-in-that-truc...

https://twitter.com/haqsmusings/status/1530964873567358977?s=20&...

[Riaz Haq]

Pakistan allocates Rs800 billion for FY23 PSDP
June 11, 2022

https://pkrevenue.com/pakistan-allocates-rs800-billion-for-fy23-psdp/

The country presented the federal budget 2022/2023, which envisages PSDP worth 800 billion rupees for the next fiscal year.

It has been centered on improvement in sectors such as water resources, transport and communication, energy, higher education, health, science and technology, and balanced regional development.

The emphasis of PSDP is also on revival of CPEC and related projects for inter-provincial and regional connectivity with equal importance to Special Economic Zones to promote trade, industrialization and create job opportunities.

The major thrust in the Information and Communication Technology sector including establishment and operations of Special Technology Zones.

Under the PSDP, the government has allocated 44.179 billion rupees including foreign aid of 1.3 billion rupees to the Higher Education Commission for implementation of 151 development projects.

The allocation indicates an increase of one hundred percent over the last year.

An allocation of over 197 billion rupees has been made for 117 power related projects.

These include hydro power generation projects such as Diamer-Bhasha, Mohmand, Nai Gaj and the fifth extension of Tarbela. Initiatives like developing water storages, automatic telemetry system, rainwater harvesting, decreasing water losses, ground water regulation and management would be undertaken in consultation with the stakeholders.

Over nine billion rupees have been earmarked for Ten Billion Trees Tsunami Programme Phase-I to achieve the target of planting 500 million trees.

Similarly, over 563 million rupees and over 1.2 billion rupees have been allocated for installation of weather surveillance radars at Multan and Sukkur respectively.

The Federal PSDP has also proposed an amount of 1.5 billion rupees to complete the emergent nature of small flood schemes all over Pakistan.

An allocation of 227 billion rupees has been made for strengthening efficiency of transport and logistics for domestic commerce and regional connectivity.

The high impact infrastructure projects to be completed under Public Private Partnership mode include Sukkur-Hyderabad Motorway, Sialkot-Kharian Motorway, Kharian-Rawalpindi Motorway, and Karachi Circular Railway. Under the CPEC, D I Khan-Zhob section is under discussion with the Chinese side for financing and it is expected to be launched in the next financial year.

The concessional financing agreement for landmark ML-1 project is to be finalized in the second quarter of the next fiscal year and subsequently arrangements will be made for groundbreaking of the project.

A comprehensive National Action Plan for agriculture modernization has been prepared in terms of capacity building, agricultural product processing technology extension, fishery science and technology, aquaculture and aquatic products processing.

[Riaz Haq]

NHA awards contract for construction of last section of CPEC’s M-8 Motorway--China Economic Net


http://en.ce.cn/Insight/202206/14/t20220614_37755846.shtml

Islamabad, June 14 (Gwadar Pro) - The National Highway Authority (NHA) on Monday awarded an Rs 8 billion contract for the construction of 168 kilometres long-missing link in the M-8 Motorway of the central alignment of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) initiative.

The 250 kilometres Ratodero-Khuzdar and 193 kilometres Gwadar-Hoshab sections of the M-8 Motorway are operational. Similarly, work on 146 kilometres long Hoshab-Awaran section is also underway at a cost of Rs9.12 billion. The contract for the last missing link between Awaran and Naal (near Khuzdar) has been awarded to a joint venture of Habib Construction Services and Matracon Pakistan for Rs 8.08 billion.

After completion of this section, Islamabad, Peshawar and Lahore will be connected with the Gwadar Port through the shortest route, NHA said. It will also mark the completion of the first-ever access-controlled link between the Gwadar Port and northern parts of the country.

The M-8 Motorway starts from Ratodero in Sindh and culminates at the Gwadar Port, passing from Khuzdar, Awaran, Hoshab and Turbat areas of Balochistan.

The east-west motorway will link Sukkur, Sindh with Gwadar. Pakistan has already completed a network of access-controlled roads from Peshawar and Islamabad up to Sukkur.

[Riaz Haq]

Commissioner For Early Resolution Of Hyderabad-Sukkur Motorway Land Acquisition Issue

https://nation.com.pk/2022/06/23/commissioner-for-early-resolution-...


HYDERABAD-Hyderabad Commissioner Nadeem-ur-Rehman Memon has asked the officers of National Highway Authority (NHA) to take concrete steps to resolve land acquisi-tion issues for construction of Hyderabad-Sukkur Motorway without any further delay. He issued the directives while presiding over a review meeting on land acquisition issues for construction of Hyderabad-Sukkur Motorway on Wednesday. He said, the land of Forest Department was also an issue for the construction of Hyderabad-Sukkur Motorway for which a legal way should be adopted to avoid any conflict. He also reviewed the ongoing construction work of roads lying in the limits of Matiari and Jamshoro districts and directed the concerned authorities to complete the work as soon as possible. The Director Land Acquisition informed that all issues would be resolved up to July 15, 2022. Hyderabad Deputy Commissioner Fuad Ghaffar Soomro, Deputy Commissioner Matiari Adnan Rashid and other concerned officers attended the meeting.

[Riaz Haq]

NHA gears up to link CPEC M-14 with Pakistan-Afghanistan border

https://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2022/07/05/nha-gears-up-to-link-cp...

ISLAMABAD: The federal government has decided to connect Ghulam Khan in North Waziristan with Motorway 14 (M-14), a project of the western alignment route of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) via a 184km-long Motorway.

According to Gwadar Pro on Tuesday, the National Highway Authority (NHA) on Monday issued a request for proposal (RFP) of consultancy services for the Feasibility Study and Detailed Design for the Construction of the Motorway from Ghulam Khan to Esa Khel Interchange (184km approx).

The project will be financed by the Federal Government through PSDP 2022-23 through separate head/allocation.

In this regard, a pre-proposal conference on the project will be held on July 19, 2022, at NHA headquarters in Islamabad while procurement will be carried out by adopting the “Single Stage Two Envelops” procedure.

The proposals complete in all respects in accordance with the instructions provided in the RFP document in sealed envelopes, which should reach on or before August 10, 2022.

Esa Khel Interchange is located over M-14 in Mianwali district of Punjab, which is in proximity to the Lakki Marwat district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). Between Mianwali and Ghulam Khan falls Bannu district of KP. After Torkham and Chaman, Ghulam Khan is the third most important crossing between Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Afghanistan has already started benefiting from Gwadar Port and the country received the first consignment of bulk cargo from the United Arab Emirates in July 2020. Ghulam Khan crossing, at the Pak-Afghan border point, is the shortest route connecting CPEC’s western route with Afghanistan, Central Asian States and beyond.

[Riaz Haq]

Mastercard partners with Pakistan’s One Network to Digitize Road Toll Payments | Middle East/Africa Hub

https://newsroom.mastercard.com/mea/press-releases/mastercard-partn...

Islamabad, Pakistan; 08 November 2021 – Mastercard has signed a strategic partnership with the Pakistani intelligent transport systems provider, One Network, to digitize the country’s road toll payments network. The announcement was signed at the Pakistan Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai, where Mastercard is the Official Payment Technology Partner, in the presence of Frontier Works Organization, Pakistan’s biggest toll collection entity.

The partnership will see Mastercard integrate its digital payment gateway infrastructure into One Network’s newly launched Apple and Android smartphone app, allowing motorway commuters to top-up their M-Tag cards in advance from anywhere using their mobile devices. The newly developed app will also enable motorists to review their travel history and check their balance in real-time.

Every year, over three hundred million vehicles travel and pay Toll Tax on Pakistan’s motorways. M-Tag uses RFID technology (radio-frequency identification) to automatically and digitally deduct credit from commuters’ prepaid M-Tag accounts as they pass through RFID-enabled toll lanes. With the integration of Mastercard’s digital mobility payment solutions, commuters can add credit whenever and wherever is most convenient to them through the new application without interrupting their journeys.

[Riaz Haq]

HOW ROADS CHANGED THARPARKAR


by Arif Hasan

https://www.dawn.com/news/1714144

The main recommendation of the 1987 report on drought and famine conditions in Thar, prepared by the author, was that the changes taking place in Thar could only be consolidated through increased mobility and linkages of Thar with the rest of Pakistan in general and Karachi and Hyderabad in particular.

It was felt that, if a road-building programme did not take place, the inequities in Thari society would increase, since those who could hire or possess four-wheel drives would be the main beneficiaries of Thar’s huge mineral and livestock potential.

For mobility and linkages to happen, a road-building programme had been recommended, which envisaged linking the four Thar taluka headquarters with one another and with the national road network. However, it was not till the Musharraf era (2000-08) that a road-building programme commenced.

The roads have made transportation cheaper and easier. The old six-wheeler kekra [World War II era American truck], which was slow and consumed enormous amounts of energy plying on the desert tracks, has been replaced by normal Bedford trucks, which are cheaper to run and can carry 250 maunds as opposed to 150 maunds carried by the kekras.

It is claimed by the transporters that, earlier, it used to take three hours from Mithi to Naukot, but now this has been reduced to one hour. They also claim that the cost of petrol/diesel and maintenance of vehicles have been reduced by 20 per cent.

With the building of the road network, trade and commerce has increased substantially. Thar’s agricultural produce now goes to distant markets — six to seven lorries per day carry onions from Nagarparkar to Lahore, and vegetables and fruit from other areas of Sindh and Punjab are now easily available in Thar.

Unlike the situation that prevailed 15 years ago, there are cattle markets in the taluka headquarters, so the Tharis do not have to make the long trek on foot to Juddo to sell their animals. Shops carrying industrially produced household food have multiplied and sell items such as baby diapers, something quite unimaginable before. Every hour an air-conditioned bus, complete with TV and Wi-Fi (owned mainly by Pakhtuns and people of Mianwali based in Karachi) leaves for or arrives in Mithi.

The number of taxis operating in Thar has increased from 150 to over 400, while the qingqis in Mithi have increased from over 150 to over 300 since 2013. These taxis carry passengers not only within Thar but to distant locations all over Pakistan, while the qingqis have almost completely replaced transport animals such as camels and bullocks.

Bank loans for the purchase of taxis are available, but to buy the qingqis and trucks, one can only borrow from the informal market. Interest rates against loans are high and vary depending on how much advance payment can be made by the borrower, or if property or land can be mortgaged against the loan. Spare parts and mechanics for the maintenance of the taxis and qingqis are locally available, which was not so in 2000 and, very often, the vehicles had to be taken to Umerkot for maintenance purposes.

Almost all these different types of vehicles have no insurance, since the owners find insurance rates far too expensive and prefer to put their trust in God. The qingqi and taxi owners have no association but are of the opinion that they desperately need one to negotiate with government agencies and fight against the bhatta [protection money] that the police extorts from them.

An association is also necessary to resist pressure from national transporters’ associations, who coerce the Thari transporters to call a strike on their advice. This was not an issue in the past, because the kekras, which the new vehicles replaced, were collectively owned by seths in Umerkot and Naukot. One truck driver pointed out that there was a desperate need for a driving school in Mithi, because people who were learning to drive were dangerous and caused a large number of animal deaths.