MAKKAH — Residents of Shouqia district in Makkah have urged the authorities to remove a used car market in the middle of the district as the disorganized market not only tarnished the district's image but also created traffic problems for residents. "This market located on white land along the main road has tarnished the district's image," said Mohammed Aseeri, a resident, while speaking to Al-Madina Arabic daily. It's not clear who is running the market, where all types of used cars are sold. "The value of the car and the contact number are written on pieces of paper and kept inside the vehicles indicating that they are for sale," Aseeri said. He urged the authorities to take action against car owners who violate the law that prevents sale of cars along streets. He said the use of open space for car sale, in violation of the law, caused many problems to the district's residents as well as shops located in the area. Khaled Wazzan, another resident, said the illegal car market occupied parking space and increased traffic bottlenecks in the district. "People park their cars in this place for weeks and months. The presence of a large number of old cars here will certainly tarnish the district's reputation," he added. Wazzan said the residents had approached the Shouqia municipality to remove the disorganized car market from the district but they said it was the traffic department's responsibility. Hamid Al-Ansari objected to people parking their cars at this place with the purpose of selling them. "Some people have converted the empty plots close to shopping centers in the district into a car showroom," he told Al-Madina. "Some shops in the district remain open 24 hours so the car owners are confident that nobody would steal their cars," he added. The owner of a car, who requested anonymity, said he had previously displayed his car in a showroom for more than month but did not receive any customer. "When I parked the car in this place I received a lot of calls and it did not cost me anything," he added. "I don't think any monitoring agency would object to parking my car in this open area," he said. Hassan Al-Husseini said agents who act as middlemen between car owners and customers might be parking the cars at the place. "These agents place the cars in open areas along the roads to get customers. If they keep them in showrooms they have to pay a commission," he said. Al-Madina contacted Col. Bassim Al-Badri, director of the Traffic Department in Makkah, for his comment on but he did not respond. Col. Fouzi Al-Ansari, spokesman for the Traffic Department, also did not pick up his phone although the newspaper contacted him several times.
