Lahore’s signal-free corridors face criticism over congestion and safety risks

LAHORE: Traffic management changes introduced in Lahore under the city’s signal-free corridors project are facing growing criticism, with residents and planners saying the replacement of traffic signals with U-turns has added to congestion, increased accidents and made daily travel more difficult.

More than 130 traffic signals installed over the past two decades in Lahore, the largest city of Pakistan’s most populous province, have been removed and replaced with U-turns. The changes were part of a wider plan launched during former president Pervez Musharraf’s era to improve traffic movement and the city’s appearance through signal-free corridors, along with flyovers, underpasses and road-widening schemes.

While the initiative has brought some improvement in traffic flow, the sharp rise in the number of vehicles has reduced the effectiveness of the system. Many roads have become narrower, and congestion is now building up at U-turns, where speeding vehicles have also contributed to accidents.

Roads affected by the changes

The roads and corridors where signals were removed include Canal Road, Jail Road, Ferozepur Road, GT Road, parts of Mall Road, Qartaba Chowk, Azadi Chowk, Walton Road, the Qainchi Flyover area, Defence to Gulberg Boulevard, MM Alam Road, Maulana Shaukat Ali Road, Band Road, Defence Road, Abdul Sattar Edhi Road, Raiwind Road, Pine Avenue and Johar Town Boulevard, among others.

On these routes, small cuts were created for U-turns after signals were taken away in an effort to keep traffic moving. However, because road space is limited in many places, several U-turns are too narrow, slowing vehicles and creating bottlenecks. Although traffic flow has improved in some areas, many commuters still face long delays at U-turns, along with a rise in accidents and air pollution caused by idling vehicles.

Residents describe daily difficulties

Residents have raised concerns about the effect of the changes on routine commuting. Hassan Khalid and Qasim Nagi, who live on Canal Road, said the U-turns create major inconvenience, while traffic police checkpoints set up to catch one-way violators add to the congestion, stretching trips of a few minutes into journeys lasting hours.

Zafar Mushtaq, a resident of Mughalpura, said that on Link Road four traffic signals were removed and replaced with two U-turns. He said traffic movement improved, but the narrow cuts reduced the width of the road, causing traffic jams and fuel wastage.

Nauman Sheikh from Johar Town said the U-turns on Maulana Shaukat Ali Road, which links Jinnah Hospital with Canal Road and nearby housing societies, are highly dangerous. He said accidents occur daily because both the road and the U-turns offer limited space, while traffic congestion becomes severe during peak hours. Residents have suggested widening both the roads and the U-turns to improve safety and traffic flow.

Officials and planners point to design flaws

Urban planner Mian Sohail Hanif Bhandara said the U-turns were poorly planned and had worsened congestion and accidents instead of easing them.

U-turns were built without proper consideration of available road space, and many have single-lane cuts instead of the standard double-lane design, which slows traffic further. At traffic signals, drivers can estimate waiting times, but at congested U-turns, it can take up to three times longer to pass. Limited turning space is the main flaw, and widening U-turns would improve traffic flow and reduce accidents.

Lahore Development Authority Director Iqrar Hussain also acknowledged shortcomings at some locations, saying certain protected U-turns in Lahore have a small turning radius that creates congestion.

Unnecessary traffic police checkpoints for one-way violations worsen traffic flow. Pedestrian bridges over U-turns are underused, forcing people to cross the road and contributing to accidents. Nearly 100 U-turns were created by removing traffic signals, and authorities are monitoring these locations. Where road widths are insufficient, they are being increased to ensure safer and smoother traffic movement.

The report presents two figures regarding the scale of the changes: it says more than 130 traffic signals have been removed over the past 20 years, while Hussain said nearly 100 U-turns were created after signals were taken away.