North end: Thakot Length 110 km | South end: Hasan Abdal | |
Highway system National Highways of Pakistan Major cities Mansehra, Abbottabad, Haripur, Pakistan, Battagram | ||
The E35 Expressway or Hazara Expressway (Hindko/Urdu: ہزارہ بزرگراه, Pashto: د هزاره بزرگراه) is an under-construction 110 kilometer long controlled-access expressway linking Hasan Abdal in Punjab province with the cities of Haripur, Havelian, Abbottabad, Mansehra, Shinkiari, Battagram, and Thakot in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The project is expected to be completed towards the end of 2017 and will reduce the travel time from between Rawalpindi-Islamabad to Mansehra from 4 hours to 2 hours.
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Map of E35 Expy, Pakistan
The expressway is not being financed by the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, but will instead be financed by the Asian Development Bank, along with a $90.7 million grant from the United Kingdom.
Hasan Abdal-Havelian section
The 110 km long, 6 lane expressway, will begin its route at its southernmost portion - the Burhan Interchange which will be located to the west of Hasan Abdal near the village of Koliya on the banks of the Haro River in northern Punjab province. The route tracks northeast, and crosses the Haro River. The Jharikass Interchange will be located immediately east of the river, where the expressway will intersect with the N-35 National Highway. The expressway will continue eastwards, where it will connect to Haripur Road via the Hattar Interchange near the town of Kot Najibullah. From there it will continue towards east to N-125 National Highway, which it will connect via the Chechiyan Interchange, 6 miles south of Haripur - thus serving as a bypass and alternative route to the N-35 National Highway which courses directly through the city of Haripur. The expressway will further continue eastwards for 2 miles before turning northeast towards the town of Shah Maqsood, where the Shah Maqsood Interchange will connect the expressway, for a second time, with the N-35 National Highway. From there the highway will run roughly parallel to the N-35 National Highway as it travels northeast towards the city of Havelian. At the confluence of the Dor River and the Salhad Nalah, the Havelian Interchange will connect the expressway with the N-35 National Highway for direct access to the heart of Havelian.
Havelian-Thakot section
The expressway will then course northwards along the N-35 National Highway towards Abbottabad, Mansehra, Shinkiari, and Battagram, ending at Thakot.
Hasan Abdal-Havelian section
The Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif inaugurated the construction of the project on November 29, 2014. The first phase of the project would cost PKR 33 billion and will include the 60-kilometre-long (37 mi), six-lane, fenced portion of the expressway from Hasan Abdal to Havelian.
Packages one and two comprising a 39.61 stretch of road between Burhan and Serai Saleh were awarded to the Chinese firm Gezhouba Group.
Havelian-Thakot section
The Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif inaugurated the Havelian-Thakot section of the expressway in Mansehra on April 28, 2016.