MADINA: Government authorities are accusing each other for the series of accidents on the Madina to Tabuk Highway which have claimed the lives of numerous women teachers, the most recent being Tuesday's crash that killed two and injured four others. Madina Traffic chief Saraj Kamal blamed the Ministry of Transport for the number of diversions on the road and a lack of warning signs. “Works to make the roads into one-way highways need to be finished as soon as possible to prevent what is an increasing number of tragic accidents,” Kamal said. Zuhair Katib, the head of Roads and Transport, however, blamed the road construction contractor. “The company hasn't fulfilled the requirements of the contract signed with the Ministry of Transport and is running late in completing works,” he said. “The contractor has been obliged to give a written pledge to finish the works as quickly as possible, and they are currently in the stage of completion.” Hussein Al-Musaihali of the Highway Security Forces said that various departments had been working together to find “immediate solutions to the problems on the road”. “Aramco came forward and began drawing up measures on the issue because of the number of its employees who use the road and who are often involved in heavy traffic at the main junction and the entrance to the company's office building, and they asked Highways Security to prepare the way to carry them out,” he said. “We were in contact with Roads and Transport and agreed on a number of measures, including the construction of an overpass or underpass at the junction. The situation remained unresolved though, and the Emir of Madina ordered a meeting of the various authorities and Aramco to look at the issue.” The meeting, he said, resulted in the decision to make the road a one-way highway. “The road has a number of problems,” Al-Musaihali said. “One of the most serious is the number of diversions along the 170-kilometer stretch from Madina to Khaybar which have been the cause of a number of fatal accidents.” The death of two women teachers and injuries to four others on Tuesday resulted from a head-on collision with a truck. Rescue teams freed the trapped driver and the injured from the wreckage and took them to King Fahd Hospital. The women have since been discharged, while the driver remains under observation. Emir of Madina Abdul Aziz Bin Majed issued immediate orders to Madina Police and the Roads and Transport department to take measures including the restriction of trucks and heavy vehicles during working hours. Works have also begun on repairing damaged sections of road and erecting road signs and warnings, and the number of Highway Security patrols is being stepped up to clamp down on speeding. Recent accidents involving vehicles transporting women teachers and trucks on the Madina to Tabuk Highway have been blamed on the number of heavy vehicles using the road, incomplete road works, and excessive driving speeds.
