Opinion | Editorials
Integrated road planning can ease traffic
All emirates should work in tandem to solve the problem of transportation.
- Gulf News
- Published: 23:22 August 11, 2008
Governments of Dubai and Sharjah are spending billions of dirhams to expand the network of roads and highways to ease the traffic flow. The expansion of Al Wahda Street - the main highway to Sharjah's downtown - is a good step in the right direction.
However, considering the strong economic growth, coupled with the growing population and rising traffic between Dubai and Sharjah, this good measure might fall short of solving the chronic traffic problem in the northern emirates.
It appears that the emirates' respective governments are developing their infrastructure in isolation. While the Dubai Metro is expected to help ease the flow of traffic within the emirate, but might create congestion on the border with Sharjah.
Similarly, the current redevelopment of Al Wahda Street might help traffic within the emirate, it may not help many commuters driving to and from Dubai.
The traffic problem between Dubai and Sharjah is much bigger than what Al Wahda Street can handle. Most people spend two to four hours in traffic commuting from work and home. In simple calculation, this means they spend on average, a sixth of their working life on the road. This is by no means a healthy trend.
These emirates are no longer isolated from each other, rather, they are very much integrated. Many people live in one emirate and work in the other which puts extra pressure on the infrastructure.
The population and mobility among Dubai, Sharjah and Ajman have increased manifold, while the infrastructure has not expanded accordingly. This is the reason for multiple bottlenecks.
Although each emirate has its own economic and social priorities, in terms of growth and development, the time has come to join hands and look at the traffic and public transport issues from a holistic viewpoint.
An integrated masterplan could be developed to end the traffic woes of residents living in the northern emirates.
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