JEDDAH — The slow pace of work on the Al-Haramain Train project is causing severe traffic congestion, several citizens here have said. Mohammad Al-Metairi said although the Al-Haramain project is a huge venture and represents a landmark in the history of transportation in the Kingdom, work is progressing very slowly. Initial work on the project, he said, was completed speedily, but somehow the work has now stalled. The closed roads and detours are causing traffic congestion, Al-Metairi said. Faisal Shaheen, another citizen, said detours in Al-Jamia, Muntazahat, and Quaizah neighborhoods have been a great nuisance to the public for months. He hoped the project will soon be completed so that blocked roads may be open to end continuous traffic jams in the work areas. Sources in the Saudi Railways Organization (SRO) said the project is receiving great attention from the higher authorities and different technical and supervisory committees are conducting weekly and monthly inspections of the 450-km long project. The Ministry of Transport is also monitoring the project and is providing the required facilities for its speedy completion. Sources added that work in the first phase of the project is progressing according to schedule, and a number of intersections on Al-Haramian Expressway are under construction. These intersections include the King Abdullah, Palestine, Tahliyah, and airport roads, in addition to Braiman Road intersection that was recently opened to the public. Furthermore, 102 bridges from a total of 137 have already been completed, and 600 rainwater underpasses out of 850 have also been completed.
