Road Transport:

Road transport is the backbone of Pakistan's transport system, accounting for 90 percent of national passenger traffic and 96 percent of freight movement. Over the past ten years, road traffic – both passenger and freight – has grown much faster than the country's economic growth. The 10,849 km long National Highway and Motorway network contributes 4.2 percent of the total road network. They carry 90 percent of Pakistan's total traffic.

Pakistan, with about 156 million people, has a reasonably developed transport system. However, when compared with other developed and developing countries, the road density of Pakistan is low. A commonly used indicator for development of the road system is road density (total length of road /total area), which is often used as an index of prosperity, economic activity and development. Pakistan intends to double its current road density of 0.31-km/sq. km to 0.64-km/sq. km gradually over the next 10 years.

Road Network:

Pakistan has a road network covering 259,197 kilometers including 172,827 KM of high type roads and 86,370 KM of low type roads. Total roads, which were 229,595 KM in 1996-97, increased to 259,197 KM by 2006-07― an increase of 13 percent. During the out-going fiscal year, the length of the high typed road network increased by 3.2 percent but the length of the low type road network declined by 5.6 percent. Extent of high type roads have increased by 37 percent since 1996-97. A sizable and continuous improvement of the high type road network can be observed from 2001 to 2007, where the network grew at an average rate of 3.3 percent. The continuous improvement and rehabilitation of the existing roads reflects the government's enhanced focus on infrastructure. As a result of an emphasis on high type roads, many low typed roads were converted to high typed roads during this period. There are many ways by which availability of improved and wide spread modern road networks can facilitate economic activity. For example, they could help alleviate poverty by providing access to far flung rural areas, create more jobs by supporting economic activity along the network and provide numerous small-scale investment opportunities. In addition, introduction of Khushal Pakistan Programme, has helped to rehabilitate and modernise rural road network along with implementation of wide ranging development activities through various district governments under the devolution programme.

National Highway Authority (NHA):

The NHA is currently the custodian of nearly all of Pakistan's major inter-provincial road links called the national highways, including the motorways and strategic roads. These roads comprise only around 4 percent of Pakistan's total road network but carry 80 percent of the country's commercial traffic. Consequently, the network is under pressure and its importance from a development perspective cannot be over emphasized. The present highway network is under strain by rising traffic flow and a slow pace of increase in capacity. Consolidation, preservation and improvement of the existing highways are needed on an urgent basis. Gradual extension of the network is also equally important to develop remote areas and to better connect major economic and social centers of Pakistan.