Road works inconvenience Jumeirah area residents

Residents of Jumeirah area are having a tough time finding parking space while running daily errands due to road works.

Continuing road works, particularly along Al Wasl and Beach Road, have also been disrupting free movement of pedestrians with motorists taking up every available inch of pavement to park their vehicles.

Access to the post office on Al Wasl Road is also difficult and has caused a few accidents there, according to residents.

A counter clerk at the Emirates Post office said he had customers complaining to him every day because of the disorder caused by the road works.

"Two days ago a man came and told me I was crazy and my manager was crazy and it was impossible to come to the post office. Every other day we have people making a complaint," said Abdullah Omar Al Jabri, 20.

"I also have to park my car on the pavement. There is nowhere else to park it. What to do?" said Al Jabri, who has been working at the post office for more than a year.

"There is construction all around the post office. Mail being delivered in the morning has to come through the front entrance now. Everything is disrupted. We don't know when it will end," said Al Jabri.

David Nicholson, a British expatriate who has been living in the UAE for 13 years, said he had to park on the pavement because there is nowhere else to park.

"It is very dangerous because people are backing out on to the main street. There is just no access or makeshift parking. It has been going on for about five weeks. Perhaps there will be more planning in the future," Nicholson said.

Samir Al Alk, a national, said he had parked on the other side of the road to avoid climbing on to the kerb.

"Sometimes I have seen cars being damaged from climbing the kerb. It is very difficult at the moment. Two weeks ago there was an accident here. There should be a parking space here. I have parked across the street to avoid all this," he said.

Another British expatriate, Wendy, 45, who has lived in Dubai for 20 years, said she used to park in the sand earlier.

"The construction is awful; I've had to park on the pavement illegally. Police would have a field day here issuing parking fines, but there is no other option. I've never seen it this bad in 20 years, but beach road is even worse than this," she said.

An official at the Road Construction Department of the Dubai Municipality said road works in Al Wasl area was part of the Pavement in Al Wasl Area project, which started a few months ago.

"We want to make the area beautiful with new pavements and drainage system on the main road as well as inner roads in the residential area. A number of new inner roads and service roads are also being constructed in the area," he said.

He said the work on the Al Wasl project is expected to finish in November.