M-5 motorway | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
ایم ٥ موٹروے | ||||
Multan–Sukkur Motorway | ||||
Route information | ||||
Maintained by National Highway Authority | ||||
Length | 392 km[1] (244 mi) | |||
Existed | 2018 | –present|||
Major junctions | ||||
North end | Multan | |||
South end | Sukkur | |||
Location | ||||
Country | Pakistan | |||
Major cities | ||||
Highway system | ||||
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The M-5 motorway (Urdu: ایم ٥ موٹروے), also known as Multan–Sukkur Motorway (Urdu: ملتان سکھر موٹروے), is a north–south motorway in Pakistan, which connects Multan with Sukkur. The motorway is a 392 km long,[2] high-speed (120 km/h), controlled-access, six-lane motorway that forms part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.[3][4] It is currently the longest motorway in Pakistan.[5]
The approval for the Multan-Sukkur Motorway (M-5) was granted in July 2014,[6] with an estimated cost of Rs. 200 billion (equivalent to US$2.5 billion in 2023).[7] In May 2016, the Pakistani government awarded the contract to build this section to China State Construction Engineering,[3] with the completion date being August 2019.[3] Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif performed the groundbreaking on 6 May 2016,[8] while the actual ground work started in August 2016.
The M-5 motorway project forms a cornerstone of the much-larger China–Pakistan Economic Corridor.[9] Construction covered 21 Chinese residential camps and 23 Pakistani workers camps with hundreds of working sites, directly providing jobs to nearly 30,000 Pakistanis at peak time.[10] The motorway was inaugurated on 5 November 2019 in the 9th Joint Cooperation Committee (JCC) meeting in Islamabad.[11]
The total cost of the motorway was estimated to be around $2.89 billion.[5]The Multan–Sukkur Motorway (M-5) cost approximately $2.94 billion, with the bulk of financing financed by various Chinese state-owned banks.[12] 90% of the project's cost was financed through concessionary loans on interest rates of 1.6% from China, while the remaining balance is financed by government of Pakistan.[13]
Starting from Multan, the six-lane motorway passes through Shujabad, Jalalpur Pirwala, Ahmedpur East, Rahimyar Khan, Sadiqabad, Ubauro, and Pano Aqil before it terminates at Sukkur.[5] The project consists of 54 bridges, including one major bridge on the river Sutlej. The motorway has 12 service areas, 10 rest areas, 11 interchanges, 10 flyovers, and 426 underpasses.[14]
M-5 Motorway Junctions | ||
Interchange | Junction | South-bound exits |
---|---|---|
Shershah Interchange | Start of motorway | |
Bahawalpur Road | ||
Shujaabad Interchange | Lodhran Road | |
Jalalpur Pirwala Interchange | Lodhran Road | |
Jhangra Interchange | Bahawalpur-DHA N-5 | |
Uch Sharif Interchange | Alipur Rd | |
Tarinda | Tarinda Muhammad Panah Road | |
Zahir Pir Interchange | Chachran Sharif Road | |
Rahim Yar Khan Toll Plaza | Rahim Yar Khan N-5 | |
Guddu Interchange | Sadiqabad Kashmore Road | |
Ghotki Interchange | JDW Unit 3 Sugar Mill Road | |
Pano Aqil Interchange | Local Road | |
Sukkur-Rorhi Interchange | Rohri/Sukkur N-5 |