AMMAN - Amman Mayor Omar Maani on Saturday reviewed the municipality's achievements in 2010 and unveiled future plans for renovating the capital's streets, addressing traffic problems and improving solid waste management.
During a press conference yesterday held at the Greater Amman Municipality (GAM) headquarters in Ras Al Ain, Maani said the capital's eastern and western sections will be linked by the Wadi Amman project.
A natural valley, Wadi Amman starts from Amman Civil Airport in Marka and ends in Prince Hussein Square on the airport road. The project entails rehabilitating streets and creating green spaces and parks.
Maani also announced that the tender for constructing the second phase of the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system will be floated within days, noting that this phase extends from the Sports City Circle to downtown Amman, passing through Wadi Saqra Street.
The mayor said the project will be operational in 2012, noting that it is designed to decrease people's reliance on private cars and provide them with efficient public transport to eventually reduce traffic.
The BRT service entails premium, high-capacity buses running on exclusive and completely segregated lanes separated from traffic by two medians on each side.
The BRT system includes high-quality stations and stops; express buses that can carry more than 120 passengers and will run on a three-minute frequency during peak hours along Amman's busiest corridors; terminals and park-n-ride facilities, and an integrated fare collection system allowing passengers to pay the fare at any station before embarking on the bus.
"Currently, there are around 680,000-720,000 vehicles on Amman's streets... if divided by Amman's population of 2.5 million, it is a relatively high number compared to other cities," Maani said during yesterday's press conference.
He underscored the capital's need for more multi-storeyed parking complexes in light of the increasing number of cars, noting that studies indicate that 15 parking lots are required in the capital to address traffic congestion.
"GAM has established three parking complexes, two in Sweifiyeh and one in Abdoun... and another is under construction in Al Naser area," the mayor said.
Regarding the capital's solid waste management, Maani said a third cell for processing solid waste will be constructed in the Ghabawi landfill at a cost of JD45 million, of which JD20 million was provided by the World Bank.
"The Ghabawi landfill used to receive around 1,400 tonnes of solid waste per day in 2005, now it processes 2,200 tonnes of solid waste daily, Maani said, highlighting the importance of extending the landfill.
He noted that 4,300 cleaners are in charge of collecting litter from Amman's streets, 81 per cent of them Jordanians.
The mayor also reviewed GAM's financial situation, indicting that its earnings reached JD312 million last year, compared to JD133 million in 2006 and JD76 million in 2001.
"GAM's earnings for this year are expected to increase to JD400 million," he said.
© Jordan Times 2011
