Pakistan is home to some of the most impressive motorways and highways in the world. From the M2 Motorway that connects the country's two largest cities, Lahore and Islamabad, to the Hazara highway that connects the northern provinces to the south, there are a number of roads that make traveling around the country a pleasure. In this blog post, we will explore the various Motorways, highways, and expressways in Pakistan and highlight their unique features and benefits.
Pakistan is home to an extensive network of
motorways and highways that connect its major cities and provinces. The
National Highways Authority (NHA) is responsible for the development and
maintenance of these roads.
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| A step towards sustainable development of the country Motorways and Highways are building under the CPEC project |
Pakistan Motorways
A Motorway is a significant road that works for quick travel over significant distances. Motorways have a few paths and prime spots where traffic moves on and then leaves. It is a controller admittance high route, which accommodates fast traffic without traffic lights and other hassles. The traffic access is given by side slip roads from place to a place called interchanges.
The initiative of building high-speed motorways as high-speed Trade Corridors was taken in 1990. The key objective was to connect the three seaports of Pakistan Gwadar Port, Bin Qasim Port, and Karachi Port with the rest of the country and further to central Asia and China. Its first phase was inaugurated in 1997 by completing Pakistan's first-ever Motorway M2 between the capital city Islamabad and 2nd biggest city of Pakistan Lahore via Kalar Kahar, Bhera, Pindi Bhattian, and Sheikhupura. The 2nd 155 Km motorway M1 was built in 2007 between Islamabad and Peshawar to further extend the trade route to the Afghanistan border.
Although there was a big political instability, and waves of terror in the country after the 9/11 attacks and the Afghanistan situation. However, the journey of trade development remained to continue. Later on, the China-Pak Economic Corridor CPEC era started and many motorway projects have been launched under CPEC across the length and breadth of the country. The construction of motorways has also uplifted the travel and tourism industry in the country due to short distances and conveyance. NHA is also promoting tourism across the country.
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| Motorways are promoting the Travel and Tourism Industry in the country |
There are 16 motorway projects of 4,266 Km which are working under the Pakistan National Highways Authority. A total of 11 motorways are completed to date and are operational. Whereas, 5 motorways are under construction.
The length of Motorways in Pakistan is 4,266 Kilometers. The famous and longest motorways of Pakistan are M8 Larkana-Gwadar 892 Km, M5 Multan-Sukkur 392 Km, M2 Islamabad-Lahore 367 Km, M15 Hazara Motorway 180 Km, M16 Swat Motorway 160 Km, M1 Islamabad-Peshawar 155 Km, and, M9 Karachi-Hyderabad 136 Km. Details about some of the motorways of Pakistan are as follows:
M1 Peshawar-Islamabad Motorway
The Islamabad-Peshawar Motorway is located on the
east-west side of Pakistan, interfacing from Peshawar to Islamabad-Rawalpindi. The
distance between these two routes is approximately 155 Kilometers by motorways.
The travelers can likewise track down the route from M-1 motorways utilizing
other travel choices like transport, metro, cable car, rail, and train.
Three significant bridges cross at M-1 motorways known
as Haro, Kabul, and the Indus. Furthermore, the course has 137 passages,
eighteen bridges, and 571 channels other than these trades and bridges.
M2 Lahore-Islamabad Motorway
This Lahore-Islamabad Motorway is located on the
north-south side of Pakistan, interfacing Islamabad/Rawalpindi to Lahore. It is
the 1st motorway to establish in South Asia. The distance between these two
routes is 367 kilometers and is located in Punjab.
It passes the intersection of M-4 at Pindi Bhattian. There are ten help regions on the two sides of the entire motorway, having opportunities for Fuel, Carwash, and drive-through eateries like KFC, Gloria Jean's Coffees, McDonald's, etc.
M3 Abdul Hakeem - Lahore
Motorways under CPEC
The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is a major
strategic initiative of the Chinese government to improve Pakistan's trade and
transport infrastructure. Under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) of China, various highways are being
built across the country to facilitate the transportation of goods and
services. Some of the most important highways under CPEC include Gwadar-Lasbela
Highway, Sukkur Highway, Indus Highway, Peshawar-Karachi Highway, Hazara
Highway, Swat Highway, Karakorum Highway, and N-5 Highway.
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| CPEC is a pilot project of China's Built and Road Initiative BRI |
CPEC power projects are also being established across
Pakistan to provide electricity to the growing population. These power projects
will further help improve the development of motorways and highways in the
country. Several projects are currently underway to expand and improve existing motorways and highways, as well as to build new ones. D.I Khan Motorway and
Tourism Highway are two such projects which are currently being worked on.
CPEC is the pilot project of China's BRI and the construction of these highways under CPEC will help make Pakistan more accessible for people, goods, and services. This will ultimately lead to an improved economy, more job opportunities, and better infrastructure for the country. The following CPEC-funded motorways are constructed or under construction.
M4 Pindi Bhattian - Multan
The six-lane motorway of 309 Km is operational since 2019. It has taken almost ten years to compete from 2009 to 2019. The M4 Motorway or Multan Motorway is a game-changing project in respect of south Punjab regional development. This motorway has been built under the CPEC project for freight traffic and is useful for commuters who need to travel quickly between Lahore and Multan.
M5 Motorway Multan-Sukkur
The longest 392 Km six-lane M5 Motorway was constructed under the CPEC project within a record period of three years from 2016 to 2019. It is important to the section of North-South connectivity. It connects major cities like Shujabad, Jalalpur Pirwala, Bahawalpur, Rahim Yar Khan, Sadiqabad, Panu Aqil, and Rohri. It is a very important motorway for south Punjab connectivity.
M6 Motorway Sukkur-Hyderabad
M6 will connect Sukkur with Hyderabad. It is a 306 Km long six-lane motorway that is under construction. At the completion of the M6 Motorway, the North-south motorway network in Pakistan will be completed and a new era of trade and development will be started under the CPEC project.
M7 Motorway Dadu-Hub
M7 Motorway is 270 Km long. It is a part of the north-south region connectivity for trade and business development across Pakistan under the CPEC project.
M8 Motorway Larkana-Gwadar
The M8 Motorway is an 892 Km long motorway that connects the Larkana of Sindh province to the world's deepest Sea Port city Gwadar in Balochistan province. It is a landmark of construction engineering under the CPEC project. It is a road to sustainable development and prosperity of the country. The M8 motorway passes through Shahdad kot New Shambani, Sun Chakho, Khuzdar, Hoshab, Turbat, and Gwadar.
M9 Mototrway Hydrabad-Karachi
The 136 km M9 connects Hyderabad with Karachi. It was built in 2017. It is a six-lane motorway. Now upgrading to eight-lane. After completion, it will be the only motorway with 8-lanes in Pakistan.
M10 Motorway Karachi Northern Bypass
M11 Motorway Sialkot-Lahore
M12 Motorway Kharian-Sialkot
M13 Motorway Rawalpindi-Kharian
M14 DI Khan Motorway
The DI Khan Expressway is an important part of
Pakistan's highway and expressway network. It is part of the China-Pakistan
Economic Corridor (CPEC) and connects the city of DI Khan with Islamabad. DI
Khan Expressway is located in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and starts from the Hakla
interchange on the M-1 Peshawar-Islamabad expressway near Hazro. The four-lane
highway stretches for a total distance of 285 km and has ten major junctions
and connects Pindi Gheb, Tarap, Daoud Khel, Mianwali and Yarik in DI Khan. It
is also called the Hakla-Yarik highway, which also touches the N-55 Indus
highway at Yarik.
The expressway has reduced the travel time between
Islamabad and DI Khan from 8 hours to just 4 hours, improving overall
connectivity between cities and towns in the region. The expressway is also
expected to help facilitate economic development in the area by providing
better access to markets and increasing opportunities for trade and commerce.
In addition, the highway is expected to provide a much-needed boost to tourism
in the region by allowing easier access to attractions such as Fort Munro.
Overall, the DI Khan Expressway is a key part of
Pakistan's expressway and expressway network and is an important element of
CPEC. It is expected to bring significant economic and social benefits to both
DI Khan and the wider region.
M15 Hazara Motorway
Hazra Motorway is an alluring and delightful motorway in Pakistan due to its green mountain terrain. The Hazara Expressway is an important highway
connecting Havelian, Abbottabad, and Haripur in the Hazara region of the Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. It is part of the China-Pakistan Economic
Corridor (CPEC) project, which will connect Pakistan's Gwadar port with China's
Xinjiang region. The highway is supposed to boost economic activity and
facilitate trade between the two countries.
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| Hazara Motorway near Mansehra Interchange. You can see the beautiful Saddle view of Bareri mountain in front of you |
The Hazara Expressway was approved by the Government
of Pakistan in 2016 and construction began in 2018. It will have several
service roads and interchanges along its length. The Hazara Expressway has
reduced the travel time between Islamabad and Mansehra from 4 hours to 2 hours.
It will also provide direct access to the CPEC project, which will further
boost trade between Pakistan and China.
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| Hazara Motorway Mansehra |
The construction of the Hazara Expressway is an
important milestone for the CPEC project as it will help improve transport
connectivity between Pakistan and China. This will subsequently facilitate
mutual business for both countries and increase overall investment
opportunities in the region. All these highways and expressways are proof of
the importance of CPEC in improving infrastructure in Pakistan. After the
completion of these projects, the travel distance between major cities like
Islamabad, Peshawar, Havelian, and Mansehra could be significantly reduced.
Hazara highway distance between Hassanabdal and Mansehra is 80 km and the Mansehra
Thakot section is 100 km which means travelers who want to travel to Thakot can
cover this distance in 3 hours without facing any traffic problems or
roadblocks. The total length of the Hazara Motorway from Hassanabad to Thakot is 180 Km.
Delighted scene of Hazara Motorway near Shah Maqsood Haripur
M16 Swat Motorway
The 160 km Swat Expressway was built in two phases and
was completed in 2018 at a cost of $200 million. It was built by the Frontier
Works Organization. It connects Kernal Sher Interchange on the M1 highway with
Chakdara via Katlang. Swat motorway is 4 lanes and there are 6 interchanges Dobian, Ismaila, Bakhshalay, Katlang, palai, and Chakdara. It connects the
cities of Saidu Sharif, Mardan, and Peshawar and provides easy access to the
tourist destinations of Malam Jabba, Bahrain, Madyan, and Kalam. The expressway
has greatly improved road travel for both locals and tourists by reducing
travel times and improving safety.
The project was financed by the Asian Development
Bank, which also provided technical assistance. The highway was also designed
to accommodate heavy traffic loads, including heavy vehicles and buses.
Overall, the Swat Expressway has turned out to be a
great success for the region. It has improved access to tourist destinations,
reduced travel time, and improved safety standards for those traveling on it.
This has had a positive impact on both the local economy and the tourism
sector.
Pakistan Highways
It refers to a significant rural voyaged way. At present, the highways have been utilized for a route in urban or rural regions, where entry and exit marks for vehicles are restricted and controlled. It is a public route that links two cities in Pakistan. It is generally the speediest course for driving to different cities. The highways of Pakistan give feasibility to individuals, products, unrefined substances, and so on, to arrive at various regions of Pakistan.
The length of highways in Pakistan is 12,130 Kilometers. The Famous and longest Highways are N-5 Karachi-Torkham 1819 Km, N-10 Karachi-Gwadar 653 Km, N-55 Indus Highway Kotri-Peshwar 1264 Km, N-35 Karakorum Hasanabdal-Khunjerab Pass 1300 Km, N-45 Nowshera-Chitral 309 Km, N-40 Quetta-Taftan 610 Km, N-50 Quetta-DI Khan 531 Km, N-70 Qila Saifullah-Multan 447 Km,
N-5 National Highway Karachi-Torkham
The National Highway N-5 is the oldest core route in the country connecting North-South regions. It is also called Grand Trunk road due to its part being built on the ancient GT road of the Sub-continent. The National Highway N-5 of Pakistan has a distance of
1819 kilometers public. It links Torkham (Pak-Afghan Border) with Karachi via Peshawar, Islamabad, Lahore, Multan, Bahawalpur, RY Khan, Rohri, Ranipur, Kandiaro, Moro, Sakrand, Hala, Hyderabad, Kotri, Bholari, Jhirk, Thatta, Gharo, and Karachi.
It works as a significant route, interfacing Karachi
and Baluchistan to the Southern region of Sindh through Badin, Sajawal, and Makli. The region of Sindh has significant importance in terms of economic and
historical worth.
The N-5 National Highway is one of the oldest highways in Pakistan that connects Peshawar with Karachi. It was recently upgraded to a four-lane expressway to reduce travel time.
N-55 National Highway Karachi-Peshawar
N-55 National Highway or the Indus Highway of 1264 km long is one of the most important highways in Pakistan, connecting Peshawar to Karachi via DI Khan. It is the main route from north to south of the country through the western plains of the Indus river.
It is passing through many important
cities like Kohat, DI Khan, DG Khan, Rajanpur, Shikarpur, Larkana, Dadu,
Hyderabad, and Thatta. The Peshawar-Karachi Highway is a section of the GT Road
Highway that runs from Peshawar to Karachi.
N-35 Karakorum Highway Hassanabda-Kunjerab Pass
The eighth Wonder of the World is the Karakorum Highway which connects Hassanabdal Pakistan with the Khunjerab Pass China border. 887 Km Karakorum Highway, also called The Silk Road, connects Pakistan with China and Central Asia through Khunjerab- Kashghar road. The other name is China- Pakistan Friendship Highway. It connects the main cities like Hassanabad, Haripur, Abbottabad, Mansehra, Batagram, Thakot, Chilas, Jaglot, Gilgit, Karim Abad, Passu, Khyber, Sust, and then Khunjerab Pass.
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| Beautiful SNow-capped mountains near Khunjerab Pass along the N-35 National Highway Karakorum |
It was built by Frontier Works Organization and from 1962 to 1978 and about 1000 workers died during the Karakorum road building. After the emergence of the CPEC project, the Karakorum Highway is very important from a trade and strategic perspective. In order to provide a short link t240 Km National Highway N-15 was built in 1991 to connect Mansehra with Chilas via Balakot, Naran, and Babusar top.
N-45 National Highway Nowshera-Chitral
The beautiful N-45 connects top tourist places with the rest of the country through N-5 GT Road Nowshehra, Mardan, Chakdara, Timargara, Upper Dir, Lowari Top, Drosh, and Chitral. The 309 Km National Highway N-45 was built in 1991. It is a very important route for tourism and trade point of view.
N-10 National Highway Karachi-Gwadar
This Highway of Pakistan is a 653 kilometers public
routing Pakistan that reaches out along the Arabian Sea coast of Pakistan from
the Karachi area to Gwadar in the province of the Balochistan region. N-10
highway crosses the areas of Pasni and Ormara.
After its construction was finished, the normal travel
time between Gwadar and Karachi has been decreased to six to seven hours, and
expenses transportation has likewise been diminished. It is blessed with unique
attractions worldwide, including Hingo National Park, The Sphinx, etc.
N-65 National Highway Sukkur-Quetta
The length of 385 Km Shikarpur- Quetta National Highway N-65 was built in 1991 and further upgraded in. It is a very important route to connect northern Balochistan with the Southern region and Sindh. Sindh and Balochistan. It connects important cities Shikarpur, Jacobabad, Jaffarabad, Sibbi, Mach, and Quetta.
N-50 National Highway DI Khan- Quetta
N-70 National Highway Multan-Qila Saifullah
The N-70 National Highway is about 440 Km East-West Connectivity of DG Khan, with Qila Saifullah via Fort Monro, and Loralai. It is passing through the beautiful mountains of Koh e Suleman range and the tourist place Fort Monro hill station. Fort Monro is called Murree of South Punjab. N-70 high connects Punjab province with Balochistan province.
N-85 National Highway
The length 487 Km Highway maintained by NHA, connects Surab with Hoshab via Basima, Nag, and Panjgur. It further connects with M8 Motorway near Hoshab Balochistan.