Islamabad Roads on 27 September: Motorways Due to Reopen at 6am
M-1, M-14 and Hazara Motorway are due to reopen at 6am on 27 September. Which Islamabad roads are still shut, where containers stand, and who to call first.
Motorways into Islamabad are due to reopen at 6am on Sunday 27 September 2026, according to the Motorway Police spokesperson as quoted in news reports. That covers the M-1 Peshawar Motorway, the M-14 to Dera Ismail Khan and the E-35 Hazara Motorway, which have been shut since 23 September.
No march is due in Islamabad on Sunday. Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) moved its 27 September march to 4 October, starting from Peshawar. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi announced that at a news conference on Friday 25 September. Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) had already put off its own march on the petroleum levy on 22 September, after a request from the Prime Minister.
The reopening is not in place yet. When we read the NHMP travel advisory at 23:18 PKT on Saturday night, the M-1, the M-14 and the GT Road at Attock Khurd were all still shown as closed. So plan for 6am as the earliest time, not a promise, and check again before you leave.
Motorways are due to reopen at 6am on Sunday
The M-1, M-14 and E-35 are due to open to traffic from 6am on Sunday 27 September, the Motorway Police spokesperson said on Saturday, according to reports. The motorway police's own live board still showed them closed late on Saturday night.
The spokesperson was quoted as saying all motorways would be restored, naming the three roads. We could not find the announcement on the National Highways and Motorway Police (NHMP) website, so the 6am time is reported, not confirmed at source.
| Road | NHMP board, 23:18 PKT Saturday | Sunday 27 September |
|---|---|---|
| M-1 Peshawar Motorway | Closed both ways, Swabi to Islamabad toll plaza | Due to reopen at 6am, reported |
| M-14 Hakla to D.I. Khan | Closed both ways, Hakla to Yarik | Due to reopen at 6am, reported |
| E-35 Hazara Motorway | Southbound lanes closed, Jhari Kas to Burhan | Due to reopen at 6am, reported |
| N-5 GT Road | Closed both ways at Attock Khurd | One report says reopening, not confirmed |
| M-2 Lahore to Islamabad | Open for cars, heavy vehicles stopped from Kot Momin | No change announced |
All closures on the board were marked "due to Law & Order Situation". The M-1 entry was last updated at 20:24 and the GT Road entry at 21:02 on Saturday.
The M-2 stays open for cars but not for heavy vehicles
The M-2 from Lahore has stayed open for cars all week. Heavy vehicles heading north are still stopped at Kot Momin, the NHMP board showed at 23:18 PKT on Saturday, in an entry updated at 23:21. No end date was given.
So a car driver from Lahore can reach Islamabad on the M-2 tonight. A truck driver cannot use it past Kot Momin, and trucks have been sent to the GT Road instead.
Two other routes from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were among the road closures of 23 September: the Rawalpindi-Kohat Road at Khushal Garh and the Abbottabad-Hassanabdal Road at Jhari Kas, according to reports quoting Islamabad Traffic Police. We found no report of either reopening. The NHMP board does not cover these roads, so we could not check them.
Containers inside Islamabad may stay in place
Containers were placed at about 10 points inside and around Islamabad last week, according to reports. No official notice says they will be cleared on Sunday, so expect some of them to still block or narrow roads in the city.
The points named in reports are:
- Faizabad, where Murree Road meets the Islamabad Expressway
- Srinagar Highway
- Ninth Avenue
- Islamabad Expressway
- Murree Road
- Tarnol and Sangjani, on the western entry from the M-1 side
- 26 Number Chungi
- T-Chowk, Rawat, on the GT Road from Rawalpindi
- The Red Zone, around Parliament and the government offices
One report on Friday said a route at T-Chowk had partly reopened for light traffic. Reports on Thursday said the Metrobus was running in the twin cities. We found no official update on the Metrobus for Sunday. The Red Zone is the most likely to stay closed, because Section 144 there runs well past Sunday.
Mobile internet has no suspension order
No order to suspend mobile internet in Islamabad, Rawalpindi or Attock has been published. The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) had posted nothing about a suspension when we checked its press releases late on Saturday.
The newest item on the PTA press release page was dated 24 September. It was about checking power backup at mobile towers so that services keep running. Nothing about a cut.
The Punjab Home Department had asked for 2G, 3G and 4G to be slowed or cut in named parts of Rawalpindi and Attock from 27 September, according to reports. The IT Minister was then quoted as saying no decision had been taken and that any cut is for the Interior Ministry to decide. A federal meeting on 25 September decided PTA should do nothing without written instructions from the Interior Ministry, one report said. The Punjab request has not been publicly withdrawn either.
If your signal does drop, calls, SMS and home Wi-Fi usually keep working during a mobile internet cut.
Section 144 still bans gatherings in Islamabad and Punjab
The marches are off for now, but the bans on gatherings are not. Islamabad's Section 144 order runs for two months from 18 September, and Punjab's runs to 5 October, according to reports. Rangers are also approved until 5 October.
For a normal traveller this changes little. The orders ban gatherings of five or more people, rallies and processions, not driving or shopping.
None of the order texts was on an official website we could open.
Check these five things before you travel on Sunday
Check the motorway police board, then call the right helpline, before you set out. A road due to open at 6am may open late, and a city container can add 30 minutes to a short trip.
- Open the NHMP travel advisory and check your motorway. Look at the "Last updated" time under each road.
- Call NHMP on 130 for motorway and GT Road questions. The number is on the NHMP website.
- Call Islamabad Traffic Police on 1915 for roads inside the city. The number is on the Islamabad Police website.
- Avoid the Red Zone and Faizabad unless you must go there, and leave extra time.
- Save a map offline and carry cash, in case mobile data is slow.
If you are flying from Islamabad airport on Sunday, the M-1 toll plaza and the Srinagar Highway were both on the closure lists. Leave early and check with your airline.
PTI's march is now set for 4 October. Expect the same closures to be considered again in the days before that date.
Common questions
Is the M-1 motorway open on 27 September 2026?
It is due to reopen at 6am on Sunday, according to the Motorway Police spokesperson as reported. The NHMP board still showed it closed at 23:18 PKT on Saturday.
Is the PTI march happening on 27 September?
No. PTI moved it to 4 October, starting from Peshawar, as announced by Chief Minister Sohail Afridi on 25 September.
Is the Jamaat-e-Islami march coming to Islamabad on Sunday?
No. JI put off its march on 22 September at the Prime Minister's request, pending a meeting with him, according to reports.
Is mobile internet suspended in Islamabad on Sunday?
No suspension order has been published. PTA had posted nothing about a cut when we checked late on Saturday.
Can heavy vehicles use the M-2 to Islamabad?
Not yet. The NHMP board showed heavy vehicles stopped northbound at Kot Momin late on Saturday.
Which number do I call for Islamabad traffic?
Call 1915 for Islamabad Traffic Police and 130 for the motorway police.
Last checked and sources
Last checked at 23:18 PKT on Saturday 26 September 2026, when we read the NHMP travel advisory and the PTA press release list ourselves. The helplines 1915 and 130 are from the Islamabad Police and NHMP websites. The 6am reopening, the container points, the PTI and JI postponements, the mobile internet request and the Section 144 and Rangers dates are from news reports, because we could not find them on an official website. We will update this if the reopening is delayed.
About the author
Author
Shahid joined us in 2024 as an author. He is a senior contributor to Pakistan's leading technology websites. He writes detailed articles, mostly covering his expertise in the latest tech, mobiles, apps, gadgets, and step-by-step guides. His ideology is to help people understand the latest trends and explain complex methods through very easy-to-understand guides.
