CDA is building Islamabad’s first pedestrian-only food street on Jinnah Avenue, with kiosks, new parking and a third-party operator, to be completed by 31 December 2025.
Pedestrian-Only Food Street to Transform Jinnah Avenue
The Capital Development Authority has fast-tracked work on Islamabad’s first pedestrian-only food street, confirming that the project will be completed by 31 December 2025. The new destination is being developed on an 800-foot stretch of Jinnah Avenue in the Blue Area, one of the capital’s busiest commercial corridors.
According to CDA officials, the main concept is to transform some part of the Jinnah Avenue into a non-vehicle public area where people can walk, eat and meet friends without any fear of traffic. The elimination of vehicles on this stretch and focusing on the pedestrians, the authority expects to enhance safety, alleviate the traffic jams and make Islamabad city look like having its own public square in the heart of the city.
Food Street Inspired by Istanbul and Lahore
As per CDA, the new food street is being planned along the lines of the popular pedestrian streets like the Istanbul Istiklal Street and the Nizami Street of Lahore. They are going to have 18-20 architecturally-designed kiosks which will offer a large variety of locally-based culinary delights, including classic street food, and newer, more technologically advanced cafe-like menus.
The kiosks will be developed in such a way that they have uniform visual identification, though individual vendors will still be able to display their branding and menu. The planners indicate that the idea is to bring together the vibe of a contemporary city street strip with the casualness of Pakistani street cuisine, as well as to build a family friendly environment that would be active throughout the day and continuing past the evening.
Round-the-Clock Work and New Parking Facilities
In order to achieve the high-targeted end of year deadline, the construction task of the pedestrian zone is being done in a series of turns. Crews are improving pavements, laying underground infrastructure and installation of lighting and seating and landscaping space. According to CDA, it is working hand in hand with traders and property owners in the Blue Area to ensure that there is minimal disturbance during the build phase.
The most important issue to the business has been the effect of pedestrianization on car accessibility and car parking. This has led to a response by CDA who has finished a new parking plaza that has a capacity of about 1,000 vehicles which is set to be opened very soon. More parking points are also being realized in the Blue Area to absorb the spill over demand with a hope of accommodating the visitors and shopkeepers after the food street has been operationalized.
Third-Party Operator to Run the Food Street
The authority has explained that it will not put stalls on the food street on sale directly. Rather, CDA will outsource to the third party operator to run the entire strip under the directives of the authority. This model is also meant to ensure that day to day operations are maintained at a professional and consistent level, whilst CDA can concentrate on regulation as well as infrastructure.
Within the suggested structure, the chosen operator will present the lump sum proposal to the authority, conduct auctions and sub-leasing on the stalls, and make sure that the necessary facilities and services are offered to both vendors and visitors. The tasks can be such as cleaning, security coordination, waste management, signs and simple repairs, which are essential to a high-foot traffic public area.
A New Landmark for Tourism and Urban Mobility
According to the officials of CDA, the Jinnah Avenue food street will be a new landmark in the city not only to residents but also to tourists. This will make the eateries focus on a walking, vehicle-free base, which in turn is likely to generate a lot of foot traffic within the Blue Area, increase trading activities, and make people spend more time in the city Centre.
The initiative is viewed by urban planners as a larger change towards more of a walking-friendly planning in Islamabad where extended roads and car-focused design had prevailed. In case of the experiment success, the possibility to open the door to similar projects in other areas of the capital will gradually increase the overall mobility of the city and the quality of life of people. Until then, everyone would be keen on whether CDA would have the promised food street ready by the end-of-year deadline and would create a new standard of serving the inhabitants of the federal capital in terms of at least having a public space.
