KARACHI: Karachi’s traffic problems may finally ease as the government plans to turn the 57-kilometre Northern Bypass into a 134-kilometre, six-lane M-10 Motorway.
Officials from the Communications Ministry said the new motorway will directly link Karachi to the M-6 Motorway at Jamshoro by passing through the Kirthar Mountain Range, The News reported. The project aims to divert heavy goods transport away from the city’s main roads and reduce pressure on urban traffic.
Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah highlighted the importance of the project during a meeting with Federal Communications Minister Aleem Khan at the CM House. “The M-6 will create opportunities for the youth of interior Sindh, while the M-10 will end Karachi’s traffic bottlenecks once and for all,” Shah said.
Provincial ministers, senior officials, and representatives of the National Highway Authority (NHA) also attended the meeting. The federal communication secretary informed the participants that the government had given final approval for the M-6 Motorway under the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP). The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) approved the Rs363 billion project.
The NHA will build the M-6 in five phases. The Islamic Development Bank has agreed to finance two sections, while a Chinese company has shown interest in taking on all five. Officials said the M-6 will complete Pakistan’s north–south motorway network from Peshawar to Karachi, reducing travel time, improving safety, and boosting trade and logistics.
The meeting also reviewed details of the M-10 project, which has now expanded into a mega initiative. It includes two segments: upgrading the Karachi Northern Bypass (34 km) from the ICI Bridge to Hamdard University Chowk into an eight-lane motorway, and building a new 134 km, six-lane motorway through the Kirthar Range that connects Hamdard Chowk to the M-6 at Jamshoro.
Additionally, the government will upgrade a 23 km road from Hamdard Chowk to the M-9 into a six-lane highway. This upgrade will create a direct high-capacity motorway from Karachi Port to the M-6 at Jamshoro, bypassing city traffic. NESPAK is currently conducting the project’s feasibility study.
Murad Ali Shah welcomed federal support and urged quick work on the M-6 to ease travel for the public and port traffic. Minister Aleem Khan assured that the ministry and NHA would complete both projects on time and with full transparency.
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