MP urges to expand highways by two lanes

Manama  : “There’s no rush hour in Bahrain anymore. Every hour on our roads is a rush hour,” remarked an MP yesterday, while urging the authorities to expand highways and main roads in the Kingdom by at least two lanes.

“Main roads should consist of at least four lanes and a fifth one for pedestrians and emergencies,” said MP Mohammed Al Maarifi.

He explained the reasons behind submitting this proposal in a statement, saying, “It’s necessary considering the rapid growth of the population in Bahrain and the drastic changes in locals’ social life. This has resulted in the need of a vehicle for almost every citizen, especially in the absence of a proper and advanced public transportation network.”

“The number of vehicles in the country is steadily growing and it did almost doubled over the past decade. It jumped from 220,000 registered vehicles in 2002 to 430,000 in 2009,” elaborated the lawmaker.

“According to the latest statistics issued by the General Directorate of Traffic, there are now 573,374 registered vehicles in the Kingdom, with a nine to 10 per cent annual growth in the previous few years. This proves that the existing roads are not capable of absorbing these huge numbers,” added the MP.

Highlighting another important point, Al Maarifi pointed out that thousands of vehicles are entering Bahrain daily through King Fahd Causeway. He said that 23,690 vehicles pass through both sides of the causeway on a daily basis, with an annual increase of 20pc. These numbers double during weekends and public holidays.”

“Effective solutions must be introduced quickly to solve this dilemma. Road capacity should be increased to cope up with the rising number of vehicles. Many, especially ambulances, are negatively affected by the never-ending traffic jams. Sometimes even lives are lost due to this,” he added.

Submitting the proposal along with Al Maarifi were MPs Osama Al Khaja, Theyab Al Nuaimi, Mohsen Al Bakry and Nabeel Al Balooshi. It was submitted to Parliament Chairman Ahmed Al Mulla’s office. It will be referred to the concerned parliamentary committee for studying before it could be voted on by the remaining MPs.