Huge Design Mistake Reportedly Exposed in Islamabad’s Underpass Named After Turkish President

An audit report by the Auditor General of Pakistan has raised serious concerns over the design of Islamabad’s 9th Avenue and Jinnah Avenue interchange, warning that it poses a “significant safety hazard” to motorists.

The report, numbered DGAWF-26-002, covers the audit year 2025-26 and financial years 2023-24 and 2024-25.

According to the audit, as per a national daily, the interchange’s underpass loop features a sharp turn of around 45 degrees, with a solid concrete wall directly in front of it. The loop was designed for a speed of 30 km per hour, even though the project’s feasibility study specified a design speed of 60 km per hour.

The audit said the design violates basic transportation engineering principles and creates a serious risk for vehicles using the interchange. It described the issue as gross negligence and professional misconduct by the design consultant.

The feasibility study, titled “Resolving Traffic Congestion Issues at Crossing of 9th Avenue and Jinnah Avenue/Ibn-e-Sina Road,” required the project’s geometric design to follow prevailing highway standards and transportation safety protocols.

Under the consultancy agreement, the contractor was required to provide a design free from proven faults and errors. The agreement also allows the CDA to recover losses or damages resulting from design negligence, up to twice the consultant’s total design fee.

During a Departmental Audit Committee meeting held on January 8, 2026, CDA management said the contractor had submitted a detailed clarification regarding the project’s geometry and safety measures.

The committee directed management to submit the consultant’s report to Audit after obtaining approval from the CDA chairman.

The latest findings follow similar concerns raised in previous audit reports on the CDA’s Bhara Kahu Bypass project on Murree Road.

Those reports highlighted the absence of third-party design verification, failure to conduct the International Roughness Index test for road smoothness and quality, procurement violations, traffic and construction safety issues, and non-compliance with standard operating procedures.

The latest audit also identified several financial and procurement irregularities in other CDA operations. These included payments of Rs. 411.776 million under an extended solid waste disposal contract originally valued at Rs. 95.191 million, irregular development contracts worth Rs. 1,587.049 million for Sector C-15, and an unjustified payment of Rs. 341 million for work at the F-10 roundabout outside the approved project scope.

It also flagged unauthorized expenditure of Rs. 7.134 million at Capital Hospital, where maintenance services for the oxygen generation plant continued after the contract expired and without fresh open bidding.

The audit said the cases reflected poor contract management, non-compliance with procurement rules and unauthorized expenditure of public funds.