Traffic congestion has become a perennial problem in Dubai & Sharjah and has become a topic of conversation with all. The traffic snarls on the Sharjah – Dubai road is the worst, may be diabolical. In a city where car is a compulsion, highways look like long parking lots. Business appointments are no longer at 9:30 or 11. We will meet between 9 & 9:30 !Just to illustrate the gravity of the problem for those who have not experienced this extreme traffic congestion – it can take over two hours to travel a distance of 15km. Normally it should take only 25min. People spend around 4 to 5 hours commuting to office & back every day. It is a grief that is gripping every individual who is living in Sharjah & working in Dubai.
Traffic congestion causes delays & waste of time. This has an impact on the business & personal life. It is estimated that the loss due to traffic congestion for the business sector is around AED4.6billion, as per the figures from the authorities. On the personal front it causes stress, ill health & less time with the family & for social life. These, however, cannot be quantified.
So what are the causes of this extreme traffic woe? There are many- lack of infrastructure (road networks), unprecedented economic activity and exponential growth in the floating population, lack of public transport, improper town planning, ‘bottle-necks’ on the road, road works, improper driving & accidents.
Just to give some figures (2006) :
Population in Dubai – 1.3m
Number of cars registered – 650,000
Cars per 1000 residents – 541
Estimated economic loss – AED4.6b ($1.25b)
Traffic congestion is a fact of life in modern & busy cities. But an interesting phenomenon in Dubai is the unpredictability of the traffic congestion. Generally in modern cities there is traffic congestion during the peak time, when people go to office or leave office. But in Dubai, often peak time can be the whole day.
People are increasingly becoming despondent & so is there a respite in the near future? The answer is negative! But the good news is that the authorities are making a conscious effort to reduce traffic congestion. Huge investments (25b AED) have been made to improve the road network & also the construction of metro project. The first phase of the metro system is expected to be complete by end of 2009. Until then let patience be a virtue in us all...
