The M-9 motorway or the Karachi–Hyderabad motorway (Urdu: کراچی–حیدرآباد موٹروے) is a north–south motorway in the Sindh province of Pakistan, connecting Karachi to Hyderabad.[1] The six-lane road is 136 kilometres long,[2][3] and caters to the commercial traffic originating from the Karachi Port and Port Qasim. Daily traffic count is around 30,000.[4]
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The motorway is an upgrade of the old Super Highway. The Frontier Works Organization executed the project on a build–operate–transfer basis for 25 years.[5][6]
History
Motorways were first proposed in Pakistan by the government of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. Pakistan's first motorway, the 367 km six-lane M-2, was inaugurated in November 1997,[7][8] making it the first motorway in South Asia.
On 11 March 2015, an inauguration ceremony was held for the M-9 Motorway with a planned completion date of August 2017. The six-lane, four-interchange road linking Karachi to Hyderabad was estimated to cost Rs. 36 billion.[9] The interchanges at Dadabhai, Industrial Valley, Nooriabad, and Thana Bola Khan, were to enable Tharparkar, Jimphir, Keenjhar, and other areas to be connected as well.
On 3 February 2017, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif inaugurated a completed section of the motorway from Loni Kot to Lucky toll plaza.[10] At that time, about half part of the route (75 km out of 136 km) had been completed, with the other half having an expected completion date of March 2018.[11][12]
On 24 December 2020, a new toll plaza was inaugurated on the M-9. With 24 lanes (6 entry, 18 exit points), it is the largest toll plaza in Pakistan.[13] In February 2022, the federal government decided to further upgrade the motorway from six to eight lanes to cater to the high traffic volume.[2]
Route
M-9 begins north of Karachi near the junction of the Karachi Northern Bypass (also known as M-10). The Karachi Northern Bypass and this road are connected via a trumpet interchange. After that, it leaves the city. Through a link road, it forms a junction with the N5 on a northeast track. The highway exits Karachi and enters the Thar Desert. Located outside the city of Hyderabad, the motorway ends at a cloverleaf interchange in Kotri. Afterwards, it merges with the N-5.
Features
As with other motorways in Pakistan, speed limits of 80 km/h for heavy transport vehicles and 120 km/h for light transport vehicles are in place on M-9. For safety and to prevent unauthorised access, it features a central median and is fenced on the outside. Only fast-moving vehicles are allow to enter, therefore, vehicles that are slow-moving are not allowed, including pedestrians, bicycles, motorcycles, and animal-driven carriages. However, heavy motorbikes are used for patrolling purposes by the Pakistani National Highways & Motorways Police.
The motorway has a two-lane service road on either side.[4]
See also
References
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