Karachi traffic signals cable theft cripples a third of the city’s network
KARACHI: The Karachi traffic signals cable theft crisis has deepened, with the theft of cables and other equipment rendering 33 traffic signals dysfunctional across the city and worsening traffic congestion on major roads. According to the Karachi Development Authority’s (KDA) Traffic Engineering Bureau (TEB), repeated thefts have knocked out more than a third of the signals installed across the metropolis, while the authorities concerned have yet to take effective measures to stop the bleeding.
After targeting iron railings around parks, playgrounds and roadsides, suspected drug addicts have now turned their attention to traffic signals, damaging critical urban infrastructure and adding to commuters’ daily difficulties.
33 of 94 signals out of order
According to the KDA’s Traffic Engineering Bureau, 94 traffic signals are installed across Karachi. However, the Karachi traffic signals cable theft wave has left 33 of them dysfunctional. The bureau further reported that signals at 26 additional locations were also out of order because of cable and equipment theft, painting a picture of a network under sustained attack.
An Express Tribune survey found that traffic police personnel often resort to manually controlling traffic at intersections where the signals are not functioning. In some instances, however, traffic officials are also absent from these locations, leaving motorists to navigate some of the city’s busiest crossings on their own.
Funding shortages stall repairs
Traffic Engineering Bureau sources said repairs had remained suspended for over a year due to funding shortages, with more than Rs10 million in contractor payments outstanding. The Karachi traffic signals cable theft problem has therefore been compounded by an administrative failure to keep the network maintained.
Following the chief minister’s directives, the Sindh government released Rs100 million to the Karachi commissioner’s office. The funding enabled authorities to repair 20 signals, including five automated ones, and install road markings and traffic signs. But the relief was short-lived: thieves later stole cables from seven of the repaired signals, forcing them out of service again.
The repeat victimisation is stark on Ziauddin Road near Lily Bridge, where cables were reportedly stolen three times, underscoring how the Karachi traffic signals cable theft cycle keeps resetting any progress made by repair crews.
Commuters pay the price of the Karachi traffic signals cable theft
As a result of the outages, traffic congestion has become a daily occurrence on major thoroughfares as well as roads within residential and commercial areas. The deteriorating condition of roads, with several stretches damaged and broken, further compounds the problem for commuters already battling gridlock.
Cameras installed along major roads have largely been used for issuing traffic challans and monitoring traffic violations, rather than identifying those responsible for damaging public infrastructure — a gap critics say emboldens the thieves behind the Karachi traffic signals cable theft epidemic.
Areas hit by dysfunctional signals
The affected locations span the city. Dysfunctional signals have been reported at Ziauddin Road near Lily Bridge, Boat Basin Chowrangi, the Sir Syed Khalid bin Walid Road intersection, Akbar Road, Court Road and Singer Chowrangi. Other locations include Makki Masjid, Yaseenabad, Atrium Mall, Karachi Grammar School, Shahrah-e-Iraq, Albela Chowrangi, Guru Mandir, Banuri Town Mosque, II Chundrigar Road near Denso Hall, Aram Bagh and Shalimar Chowk.
What needs to change
Officials acknowledge that without preventive measures — from securing cable conduits to acting against the buyers of stolen copper — the Karachi traffic signals cable theft loop will continue: repair, theft, outage, repeat. Until funding flows steadily and enforcement catches up with the thieves, Karachi’s commuters will keep paying the price at every darkened intersection.
Sources: The Express Tribune ; ProPakistani
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