There’s a lot to be said in favour of a smooth daily commute for a healthy and positive start to one’s work and school day.
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| Traffic gridlock in The Gardens, in Dubai. |
Residents
at master developer Nakheel’s Discovery Gardens, The Gardens Community
and Al Furjan Villas have been up in arms this past month due to the
appalling traffic gridlock faced by Dubai commuters and school drop-off
parents in its surrounding areas. A development that serves up to 30,000
residents and boasts 95 per cent occupancy has seen its roadways
strained with bottlenecks due to a sudden RTA move to close a temporary
dirt-path leading off from the Ibn Battuta Mall to the Sheikh Zayed
Road. It seems this path has served as an informal fourth exit used by
hundreds of cars every day for a swift getaway during morning and
evening rush hour. The abrupt cut off that served as a lifeline for a
number of years has frustrated commuters and children on buses servicing
three local schools. Last week, the matter was made worse due to the
rains and flooding, bringing greater pressure to bear on The Gardens’
historically poor drainage that caused accidents and left cars and vans
abandoned in the flood water.
In the daily press, travellers’ have tweeted their travails as “being trapped” in vehicles from 45 minutes to two hours to reach school and work. Anxiety levelled at the RTA and Nakheel has been over children’s health and safety on buses, left without snacks and access to bathrooms.
On 13 February, Nakheel advised, “Today’s traffic congestion at Discovery Gardens is the result of a road closure by the RTA for safety reasons. We continue to liaise with the RTA, impressing upon them the urgent need to address traffic congestion in the area. Meanwhile, to help ease the situation, Nakheel has today opened up a temporary route between Discovery Gardens, Al Furjan and the E77 (Al Yalayis Road), which connects Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Road and Sheikh Zayed Road”. Since then The RTA announced, “As regards to the traffic congestion at Discovery Gardens the RTA is about to undertake further road works in the area with a view to providing two additional entries and two exits for the Discovery Gardens and Ibn Battuta Mall at Interchange 5.5 on the Sheikh Zayed Road and the Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road. Works in these solutions are expected to be completed by the end of this year 2014. These works are undertaken as part of the next 5-Year Plan, which provides for completing parallel roads in that area”.
This lack of foresight in proper urban planning in a growing city creates headaches for the community at large and property owners. Many residents renting properties are thinking of moving out of the area. In speaking to Sohair Elmeniawi, Client Manager at Exclusive Links Real Estate Brokers responsible for The Furjan Villas, she commented, “We are finding that the absence of the originally promised exit to the Emirates Road, standing water and lack of a security gate in this prestigious development is scaring buyers away. While traffic issues are a main-stay of this area, property prices had risen in 2013 for three bedroom villas from AED 2.3 million – AED 2.9 million. Although Nakheel has done a good job with quality at Al Furjan, now prospective buyers are shying from such serious infrastructure issues. So access particularly is affecting property movement and so communities will get affected. It’s the RTA’s responsibility to sort out immediately, especially in view of the area’s proximity to the Jebal Ali Airport, Abu Dhabi and EXPO 2020 pavilions that will be located in this area.”
As a school mum to the area, the daily challenge puts undue pressure on the morning run to work. The school is accommodating and so are my bosses in their understanding, of matters far beyond one’s control. Patience is a virtue, yet the consequences of ad hoc planning should not be left to the good graces and acceptance of helpless residents.
Perhaps this raising of exigent petitions through social media and the show of reluctance by home- buyers to commit, may make the case and the endorsement for change and propel local agencies to cooperate in the planning and development of living spaces that are amenable for ease and safety of movement and peace of mind for all.
For more blogs form CPI Financial, Visit our website.http://www.cpifinancial.net/blog
In the daily press, travellers’ have tweeted their travails as “being trapped” in vehicles from 45 minutes to two hours to reach school and work. Anxiety levelled at the RTA and Nakheel has been over children’s health and safety on buses, left without snacks and access to bathrooms.
On 13 February, Nakheel advised, “Today’s traffic congestion at Discovery Gardens is the result of a road closure by the RTA for safety reasons. We continue to liaise with the RTA, impressing upon them the urgent need to address traffic congestion in the area. Meanwhile, to help ease the situation, Nakheel has today opened up a temporary route between Discovery Gardens, Al Furjan and the E77 (Al Yalayis Road), which connects Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Road and Sheikh Zayed Road”. Since then The RTA announced, “As regards to the traffic congestion at Discovery Gardens the RTA is about to undertake further road works in the area with a view to providing two additional entries and two exits for the Discovery Gardens and Ibn Battuta Mall at Interchange 5.5 on the Sheikh Zayed Road and the Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road. Works in these solutions are expected to be completed by the end of this year 2014. These works are undertaken as part of the next 5-Year Plan, which provides for completing parallel roads in that area”.
This lack of foresight in proper urban planning in a growing city creates headaches for the community at large and property owners. Many residents renting properties are thinking of moving out of the area. In speaking to Sohair Elmeniawi, Client Manager at Exclusive Links Real Estate Brokers responsible for The Furjan Villas, she commented, “We are finding that the absence of the originally promised exit to the Emirates Road, standing water and lack of a security gate in this prestigious development is scaring buyers away. While traffic issues are a main-stay of this area, property prices had risen in 2013 for three bedroom villas from AED 2.3 million – AED 2.9 million. Although Nakheel has done a good job with quality at Al Furjan, now prospective buyers are shying from such serious infrastructure issues. So access particularly is affecting property movement and so communities will get affected. It’s the RTA’s responsibility to sort out immediately, especially in view of the area’s proximity to the Jebal Ali Airport, Abu Dhabi and EXPO 2020 pavilions that will be located in this area.”
As a school mum to the area, the daily challenge puts undue pressure on the morning run to work. The school is accommodating and so are my bosses in their understanding, of matters far beyond one’s control. Patience is a virtue, yet the consequences of ad hoc planning should not be left to the good graces and acceptance of helpless residents.
Perhaps this raising of exigent petitions through social media and the show of reluctance by home- buyers to commit, may make the case and the endorsement for change and propel local agencies to cooperate in the planning and development of living spaces that are amenable for ease and safety of movement and peace of mind for all.
For more blogs form CPI Financial, Visit our website.http://www.cpifinancial.net/blog
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