Dubai: "Safety is no accident," reads a huge banner atop a 39-storey residential building under construction opposite the Sadaf block of Jumeirah Beach Residence (JBR).
At the barricade below there's another "Safety First" message.
However, ironically, the pavement by its side is blocked, leaving little room for pedestrians to walk. "The pavement can barely accommodate me or my daughter's buggy," said Aimee Pudney, a British resident of JBR, as the two wheels of the little pushchair kept falling off the narrow path, even as she constantly peeked over her shoulder to check out speeding vehicles turning at the blind bend.
"It's a nightmare every time we want to walk across to the Marina Mall or to the Marina itself," said Pudney, who is reluctant to take her little one out ever since a speeding bus nearly hit a friend at the blind corner. Ana Thomas, another British resident, said she had to use the road leading to the bridge as what was left of the pavement could not accommodate the double buggy of her three- and one-year-old daughters.
"The double buggy is quite wide and can't fit on the narrow pavement and we have to use the road," she said.
"We need the barricades to be moved back so that we can use the pavement." "Why can't they have a traffic button at the crossing so that pedestrians can get vehicles to stop?" said Pudney. "The barricades which carry advertisements also need to be removed."
It's the same story across the bridge where the pavement has been eaten up by another 39-storey building under construction. And there's the tram construction work as well to contend with. "I cannot take the bus to the Metro because of the tram construction work," said another resident.
A maid working in the area said she had to walk quite a distance before she could find a short cut to catch a bus.
"Dubai Marina is such a beautiful place to live in and walk around, especially for people like me who do not use a car," said Pudney, regretting that the construction work had made them very insecure.
