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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