Traffic department officer receives parking ticket

AMMAN — The capital's traffic department on Tuesday issued a parking ticket to one of its officers, an official at the department said on Wednesday 

Department Director Col. Bassem Kharabsheh said one of the department's vehicles was parked at a place designated for motorists with disabilities, prompting the issuance of the traffic ticket.

“He will not only receive the ticket, but he will be prosecuted administratively,” Kharabsheh told The Jordan Times over the phone on Wednesday. 

He said the incident will send a strong message to all motorists to abide by the law. 

“Some people were complaining about the campaign we are holding to simply enforce the law. This incident shows that no one is above the law,” the traffic official added. 

A number of people with disabilities interviewed by The Jordan Times described the step taken by the department as “encouraging”. 

Rami Zalloum said the traffic ticket that was issued is an a step towards taking more measures for the benefit of people with disabilities. 

“It is a positive step because we noticed that many people do not pay attention to us and they park their cars on the parking spaces that are designated for us. I heard from many people that traffic officers only talked to them without issuing any traffic tickets,” Zalloum told The Jordan Times. 

Hadeel Abu Soufeh, who co-launched the Kumisteer initiative that seeks to encourage people with disabilities to be volunteers, also commended the step, calling for more public awareness of this issue. 

“There is a severe lack of parking lots in Amman for motorists with disabilities. There are no such paces in commercial areas, including shopping malls,” she added.

Zalloum agreed with her.

“These parking spaces are only placed in a limited number of areas in Amman and there is a need to increase them,” he added.  

Abu Soufeh said many people park their cars in spaces designated for people with disabilities because many of them do not know the meaning of the traffic sign, calling for media awareness campaigns to address this issue.