[gallery size="medium" td_select_gallery_slide="slide" td_gallery_title_input="Emir orders urgent steps to correct technical faults on Asfan Road" ids="91506,91503,91504,91505"]
THE road department has so far failed to find a solution to the growing problem of traffic accidents in front of a new university campus in Asfan, about 70 km north of Jeddah. Residents have blamed engineering mistakes and the absence of routine maintenance for the problem.
The 25-km road has become a death trap for motorists in Asfan, whose population has increased in recent years. Huge trucks have taken the lion’s share of the road for parking.
Meanwhile, Makkah Emir Prince Khaled Al-Faisal, who is adviser to Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, has urged immediate measures to correct technical faults on the road leading to Jeddah University in Asfan to ensure the safety of students and other motorists.
The emir’s directive comes following reports of recurrent accidents on the road that claimed lives of several students and other motorists over the past few months. People have blamed technical faults as well as reckless driving and parking of huge trucks on the road for the accidents.
Prince Khaled instructed the authorities to inform him about the measures taken to ensure safe driving on the road.
Al-Madina Arabic daily saw a large number of vehicles lining up at the turning point where the road begins. Huge trucks take up two entire lanes to turn on to Asfan Road, an Al-Madina reporter said.
He added that he had to make several dangerous curves to reach the campus of the newly established Jeddah University. He also saw motorists blatantly violating traffic rules, a major reason for accidents.
Nasser Al-Dossari said the absence of Saher cameras and traffic police in Asfan encourages motorists, especially drivers of heavy trucks, to violate road regulations.
Baraa Shaheen blamed the dangerous curves for the growing number of accidents on the road.
According to Shaheen, the presence of road bumps was another reason for accidents as drivers are not able to notice them from far to reduce speed.
Mahmoud Abdussalam, an engineer specialized in road construction, said Asfan Road lacked several safety measures, including asphalted strips on both sides, white lines to indicate lanes, cat’s eye reflectors and road signs. He also said no efforts were made to straighten the dangerous curves on the road.
“This is an old road, which was constructed based on a primitive design. Unlike in the past, a large number of motorists use the road now. The road needs to be redesigned incorporating modern safety means to meet the requirements of growing traffic,” Abdussalam told the Al-Madina.
The newspaper contacted Omar Bamasfar, public relations manager of the Transport Ministry’s branch office in the Makkah region, for his comments on the department’s efforts to resolve the engineering problems on Asfan Road. But he asked the reporter to contact the ministry’s official spokesman in Riyadh for a response. Turki Al-Tuaimi, the ministry’s spokesman, did not respond despite repeated efforts to get in touch with him. Mohammed Tawfik Madani, director of transport in Makkah province, also did not pick his phone.
Col. Zaid Al-Hamzi, spokesman for Jeddah Traffic Department, said his department had deployed a number of officers to control traffic on Asfan Road, considering the growing number of accidents that take place on the road almost daily.
“We have closed some U-turns to minimize accidents and have installed safety signs along the road,” Al-Hamzi said.
Brig. Sulaiman Al-Zakari, traffic director in Jeddah, spoke to Okaz/Saudi Gazette about short-term and long-term measures his department has taken to reduce accidents on the road.
“We have put concrete blocks in places used by trucks and other vehicles for crossing,” the traffic director said, adding that such crossings were one of the reasons for a large number of accidents on the road. “We’ll deploy more traffic officers on the road throughout the day,” he added.
Huge trucks will not be allowed to pass by the road during peak hours. Surveillance cameras will be installed on the road to catch reckless drivers and prevent speeding.
“We’ll coordinate with the university authorities to ensure safe driving on the road,” he told Okaz/Saudi Gazette.
