Murree Expressway Extension to Link AJK With Motorway Network
The federal government has decided to extend the Murree Expressway by 70 kilometres to Muzaffarabad, a move aimed at improving travel access between Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Pakistan’s wider motorway and expressway network. The decision was taken on Thursday during a National Highway Authority meeting in Islamabad chaired by Federal Communications Minister Abdul Aleem Khan.
The planned extension of the N-75 route is being presented as a major connectivity project for AJK, where road access remains a critical issue for residents, businesses, tourists and emergency services. By linking Muzaffarabad more directly with an established expressway corridor, the government hopes to reduce travel pressure on existing routes and support safer movement through mountainous terrain.
According to the communications ministry, the NHA meeting reviewed the authority’s financial close and infrastructure priorities for the current fiscal year. The discussion focused not only on new connectivity goals but also on the government’s effort to bring discipline to project execution and avoid spreading resources too thinly across incomplete schemes.
Minister Abdul Aleem Khan said the people of AJK deserved modern and safer road facilities similar to those available in other parts of the country. He directed the NHA leadership to prioritise completion of ongoing schemes before launching additional projects, signalling that the authority will focus on finishing 25 priority works during the fiscal year.
The minister also highlighted the importance of the M-8 Motorway and instructed officials to accelerate work on the Hoshab-Awaran Road and the Awaran-Nal project. These routes are considered strategically important because they can improve trade movement toward Iran and open up tourism opportunities in Pakistan’s southwestern regions.
The Murree Expressway has already been under review and rehabilitation during the minister’s tenure, with earlier visits focused on beautification, route improvement and safer travel conditions. The latest decision gives the corridor a wider regional role by extending its relevance from a tourist access route to a broader inter-regional transport link.
Road connectivity between northern Punjab and AJK has long carried economic and social importance. Muzaffarabad depends heavily on road transport for trade, education, healthcare access, tourism and movement of government services, while poor weather and difficult mountain roads can often make travel slow and risky.
The government also discussed the long-term financial position of the NHA, with the minister outlining a plan to make the authority more self-reliant. The objective is to restructure NHA operations so the organisation can generate up to Rs400 billion annually from internal revenue sources instead of depending mainly on federal funds.
For Pakistan and AJK, the proposed extension could bring several benefits if completed on time. Improved roads may reduce travel times, support tourism in Muzaffarabad and surrounding valleys, strengthen commercial movement and give residents safer access to major urban centres in Punjab and Islamabad.
The next phase will depend on detailed planning, funding arrangements, engineering surveys and execution by the NHA. The project’s success will ultimately be judged by whether the extension is delivered safely, transparently and within a realistic timeline, especially in a region where terrain, weather and construction quality can heavily influence long-term road performance.