Capital braces for further traffic jams as it receives more summer visitors
Published on Jul 28th, 2009 by internetcont in Press with
By Omar Obeidat www.jordantimes.com
AMMAN –– Around 700,000 cars, mainly from the Gulf countries, are expected to enter the Kingdom this summer, and the Public Security Department said it is prepared to deal with the traffic jams that have already become a familiar scene in the capital.
A familiar scene in the capital. The Traffic Department said it has prepared a plan to deal with heavy summer traffic conditions as around 700,000 cars are expected to enter the Kingdom this season (Photo by Nader Daoud)
According to Traffic Department Director Brigadier General Adnan Freih, this figure is similar to last year’s, but this year, road congestion is expected to increase due to several construction projects currently under way in Amman.
The Traffic Department has prepared a plan to deal with heavy traffic conditions by deploying more officers at jammed spots, providing visitors with brochures on traffic regulations and information hotlines, and increasing their awareness of construction sites, he added.
“There are several detours in Amman due to construction projects such as the intersection linking Shmeisani, Abdali and Jabal Amman. Traffic officers have been deployed to help ease traffic jams in these areas,” Freih said, also pointing out that the summer festivals currently taking place in the capital add to the difficulties facing road users and traffic police.
“Some traffic lights have been readjusted and set according to the relative traffic flow, in addition to changing the directions of some streets in the city in order to reduce traffic,” Freih noted.
However, Freih insisted that there is no bumper-to-bumper traffic where cars do not move for minutes, but explained that the number of cars in the city is increasing dramatically, noting that a total of 40,000 new cars were registered during the first six months of the year.
Meanwhile, the official told The Jordan Times that driver behaviour is another major cause of heavy traffic, when, for example, people double park their cars for minutes to go shopping.
Motorists in Amman say that trips to some areas, which normally would take five to 10 minutes, now take almost an hour during peak hours, particularly where construction projects are being carried out.
Mohammad Nasr, a taxi driver, told The Jordan Times in a recent report that the timing of the construction work was “not wise” as it coincides with the seasonal influx of tourists and Jordanian expatriates in the summer.
The Greater Amman Municipality (GAM) has said it is working to resolve continuous traffic congestion and build an integrated public transport system.
In a recent interview with The Jordan Times, Amman Mayor Omar Maani said the municipality established a special department to plan and manage the transportation sector in the capital, adding that GAM is working with the World Bank to build a “comprehensive public transportation system”.
The municipality will float a tender in November for investors to bid on building and operating Amman’s first “Metro”. In the same month, GAM will invite the private sector to invest in large buses that will run in special lanes.
In addition, the municipality is implementing new traffic intersections, at a cost of JD55 million, in various parts of the capital, the largest of which are currently under construction in Jabal Amman and Shmeisani, according to Maani.
However, the mayor said that these measures and projects would not end traffic congestion in Amman, but soften its impact and encourage more citizens to use public transportation rather than private cars.
