TAIF, 6 August — Saudi Arabia will soon embark on a major international expressway project linking the country with Jordan in the north and Yemen in the south. This was disclosed yesterday by Communications Minister Dr. Nasir Al-Salloum.
Salloum said the government has made allocations for the project in the current national budget, and added that the road would pass by Tewal, Jizan, Darb, Qunfuda, Laith, Jeddah, Yanbu and north Aqaba.
The minister’s announcement came as Crown Prince Abdullah, deputy premier and commander of the National Guard, laid the foundation stone for a 20-km road in Taif, linking Oqbat Al-Muhammadiya in Shafa and its suburban areas with Tihama and the Red Sea coast.
Addressing the Taif ceremony, the minister said the new road, the cost of which is estimated to be SR36 million, will pass by Tihama mountains and thus reduce traffic on the Taif-Hada Road. While unveiling the project’s plaque, Crown Prince Abdullah expressed his hope that the new road would also help reduce traffic accidents.
Later, Salloum briefed the crown prince on the project and its various phases with the aid of a map. Prince Abdullah instructed the minister to complete the project as quickly as possible.
The ceremony was attended by a large number of princes and high-ranking officials including Prince Miteb, minister of public works and housing, Prince Abdul Majeed, the Makkah governor, Prince Faisal ibn Abdullah ibn Muhammad, head of the National Guard in the Western Region, and Prince Saud ibn Abdullah ibn Thunayyan, governor of the Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu.
Salloum said work was under way on a two-way Jizan-Darb road. “We have already completed the main part of this vital road,” he told Okaz newspaper. “The project will take months to complete because the work is carried out without disrupting the traffic,” he added. The minister also disclosed that his ministry was constructing a ring road in Jizan to facilitate traffic in the region. The Saudi government has already spent more than SR120 billion on building state-of-the-art roads, highways and flyovers in various parts of the country.
The international highway is significant as it will play a big role in boosting the Kingdom’s economic, commercial and social relations with the two Arab neighbors.
