Business Desk 
Nov 10, 2025
A major traffic jam clogs Sharea Faisal, causing severe disruption for commuters in the metropolitan city of Karachi on May 5, 2025. — APP
Karachi is a megacity that still faces one of the most severe traffic issues in the country, with over 20 million residents.
Pasban Democratic Party (PDP) Chairman Altaf Shakoor highlighted that Karachi's car-centric growth is the main problem. Public transportation has been neglected in favour of private vehicles and motorcycles in urban planning over the last 20 years.
Because of this policy, there are now more cars than the current roads can handle. The city lacks a working mass-transit system, and the increase in delivery fleets and ride-hailing bikes further clogs its arteries. Despite being a first step, the Green Line BRT only serves a small area of Karachi.
Political differences have caused its second phase to stall, and there are few feeder services available.
The issue is exacerbated by lax traffic enforcement. Major roads are blocked by illegal parking, buses and motorcycles regularly cross lanes, and there is a lack of lane discipline. When enforcement is weak, even well-designed streets become congested.
Because of the city's disorganised road system, which combines highways, business corridors, and inner streets, there are bottleneck intersections, random U-turns, and pedestrian hazards.
Solution to Karachi's traffic jams
- A comprehensive bus rapid transit (BRT) system that extends beyond the Green Line and is backed by timed transfers, feeder services and vans.
- GPS tracking in real time for buses to increase dependability and timeliness.
- Reclaiming roads from encroachment and installing AI-powered or adaptive-timing modern traffic-signal systems.
- Dedicated motorcycle lanes to reduce collisions and improve traffic flow.
- Tight parking regulations in conjunction with multi-storey parking structures in business areas.
The Karachi Circular Railway could serve as the foundation for the city's public transport system if it is revived.
Shakoor emphasises that constructing more flyovers won't solve traffic on its own. It will only temporarily alleviate the issue. To provide long-term relief to Karachi's traffic woes, a thorough, multimodal strategy is required.
