Traffic, again

The Greater Amman Municipality (GAM) is projecting an additional 400,000 vehicles on the streets of Amman during the coming summer season, a figure that can only suggest the traffic jams and the mammoth task that awaits those wishing to ease them, like GAM.

The number might even be a conservative estimation, knowing that summers witness a flood of tourists and expatriates from the Arab Gulf who often come by a car to spend the summer months in Jordan, taking advantage of the pleasant weather conditions.

Whatever the case, the staggering number may not even be an issue, considering the fact that Amman’s roads are already overflowing when “normal” traffic conditions prevail; an increase in the number of cars will only worsen an already bad situation.

Still, GAM said it was taking a series of measures to face the expected influx of cars. 

Will they work?

Will they be up to the projected challenge?

One of such measures, according to a GAM official, is to deploy more vehicles to ensure smooth traffic flow.

How adding to the already high number of cars will help ease the traffic defeats logic, but then, there is little logic in the traffic situation in Amman.

More parking spaces will be made available, more traffic lights are also envisioned and even more efficient valet services are being considered. 

Surely this is helpful, but all these steps are cosmetic.

Instead of constantly patching up, why don’t concerned officials take the issue by the horns and fix it for good?

Why not work on a decent public transportation system that will make using private cars more costly, in terms of money and time, not to speak of the cleaner air and commuters’ peace of mind.

Why not work on a bus or underground network with fixed schedules and convenient connections that everybody can use, resorting to personal cars only when absolutely necessary?

Solutions exist and could be found. They might be costly, but in the long run, they pay off.

Restrictions on the use of private cars on the basis of plate number, abhorred as it is, could be an extreme, if permanent, solution.

Changing office hours for some companies and governmental agencies to avoid “rush hours” could be another. 

A half an hour gap could perform wonders on the streets.

The same could apply to schools. 

Temporary solutions might help, true, but they remain just that.

A permanent solution to the painful traffic situation in Amman must be found, and soon.