Saudi Gazette report

JEDDAH – As deadly accidents have become common on a service road at Jeddah’s Al-Nakheel district as the result of a technical problem while implementing the Haramain Railway project, the Transport Ministry and Jeddah Municipality have been shifting blame instead of solving the problem.

“The technical problem was created when the company constructed the railway line from the south to north, turning the line to the service road parallel to the expressway,” one resident of Al-Nakheel said, adding that the construction error led to several accidents on the road.

Before implementing the railway line, the service road was a dual way road with a divider. After implementation of the railway project, it became a two-way road without any divider.

Al-Nakheel residents said they had approached the company that constructed the railway as well as the municipality to correct the mistake in construction but they blamed each other without taking any step to solve the problem in the past two years.

Samir Al-Ahmady said the technical mistake was committed by the company while constructing the railway line as it diverted the service road, causing several problems.

“The removal of the divider on the road and disappearance of street lights were the main reasons for accidents,” Al-Ahmady said while urging the authorities to solve the problem as quickly as possible to prevent recurrence of deadly accidents.

“When we approached the municipality they put the blame on the railroad construction company while the company said it was the municipality’s responsibility to correct construction mistakes in service roads,” Al-Ahmady said.

“Two years have passed without any solution for the problem while the municipality and the company continue their blame game,” he added.

Mohammed Al-Dossari highlighted the dangerous situation on the road. “Many accidents have occurred on this service road in the past two years, especially at night.”

He said the company that constructed the railway line had promised to correct the technical mistake but it left the place without fulfilling the promise.

Al-Dossari urged higher authorities to intervene to solve the problem and prevent more accidents on the road. “The company and municipality have been exchanging blame over the past two years without understanding the seriousness of the issue,” he told Okaz/Saudi Gazette.