Are toll roads in Jordan viable?

toll highway the point of payment for travel
(Photo: Envato Elements)
AMMAN — Part of Jordan's Economic Modernization Vision for transport and mobility is road rehabilitation through toll introduction. Recently, the government announced that it is planning consultancy studies to determine feasibility. اضافة اعلان

However, many across the Kingdom are worried about the additional economic burdens and exclusivity tolls might bring.

'Unfair' Former mayor of Amman, Mamdouh Abbadi, told Jordan News that introducing tolls "is unfair as it the government's responsibility to improve roads and driving infrastructure".

Tolls are usually used to finance new, alternative roads that make commutes either easier (to avoid traffic) or faster. Tolls are typically not levied on existing roads. 
"It is the government's duty to prioritize infrastructure, especially in relation to transportation… This reveals the government's failure and inability to provide roads and services to citizens who pay taxes."
Building toll roads requires some form of public-private partnership, which means the government and interested investors must determine how the tolls can compensate the investor for the cost of building the road. 

After the investor is compensated, the toll can conclude its services, as it is not an additional source of government income. And Abbadi said that this is exactly his concern. "I am afraid that tolls will serve as a means for the government to collect money". 

Economist Mohamad Al-Basheer also rejected the idea of tolls, saying, "it is the government's duty to prioritize infrastructure, especially in relation to transportation."

"This reveals the government's failure and inability to provide roads and services to citizens who pay taxes," he added. 

A 2019 World Bank report indicated that the government is working on developing 14 main roads, 12 of which are highways and two of which are circular roads with a total length of 1,379km. These roads will be integrated into a public financial sustainability project and will charge road users for usage.

The report proposed a unified fee for Jordanian highways tolls of JD0.011/km for cars and JD0.022/km for trucks.

'Privatizing public transport'If implemented, MP Saleh Al-Armouti said that tolls will be "the first step towards privatizing the public transport sector to serve a specific group of people."
"We have not been able to renovate existing roads; how will we build new ones?"
Instead of new roads, Armouti said, the government should "prioritize maintaining and upgrading current ones".

The toll road project, he said, will cost and burden the government. "We have not been able to renovate existing roads; how will we build new ones?" 

On the other hand, Economist Yusuf Mansur said that toll roads could succeed, "especially if these roads are efficient and monopolized by the government". 

"For example, tolls were once introduced on Airport Road, and many resorted to using the road because the government placed speed bumps on the alternative free road, making it more time-consuming to take." 

This, he said, made people take the toll road to save time. 

'A necessity'Chairman of NAMA  Strategic Intelligence Solutions Fares Braizat said that introducing tolls has become "a necessity", and other countries implemented this move years ago. 

Using tolls, he said, is up to the people, emphasizing that it is not a requirement. 

"Toll roads reduce pressure on other roads and contribute to reviving the economy and creating a competitive alternative," he said. 

MP Dina Al-Basheer shared Braizat's thoughts. "These roads are being implemented in many countries and have proven successful," she said.  

Toll roads "are part of the solutions to transportation and road problems," she added. 

The main problem in the transport sector is poor infrastructure and slumped roads, she said, adding that maintenance operations are not carried out in a well-planned or organized manner.
"This government might implement toll roads. The next might focus on creating railways to other countries, which is why we need a strategy."
"Progress in the transportation sector depends on the existence of a tactic to improve roads and transport networks," she added. 

Thinking beyond tollsJawad Anani, former minister for economic affairs, said that the transportation sector needs a toll road project. But "we must focus on developing and establishing a strategy moving forward," he said. "This government might implement toll roads. The next might focus on creating railways to other countries, which is why we need a strategy." 

In Jordan, Anani said, movement between cities remains time-consuming due to a lack of quick options. "A toll between Amman, Zarqa, and Irbid, for example, would alleviate that," he said. 

"These projects will also improve the economy, create job opportunities, and ease traffic jams," he added. 


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