JEDDAH, 3 April 2007 — The Jeddah Municipality has issued new regulations and fines to control the spread of illegal speed bumps, which are often constructed by local residents without consideration for the possible damage to vehicles.

Municipality spokesman Ahmad Al-Ghamdi said that the new regulation would make constructing speed bumps illegally is punishable with a fine of up to SR5,000. “Violators also have to take care of removing the bump,” he added.

The city will also begin identifying and removing illegal speed bumps throughout the city. Where speed bumps are deemed necessary, city officials will then install ones that abide to an international standard. Illegal speed bumps vary in height, and some of them are tall enough to scrap the undersides of cars driving over them, even at very slow speeds.

Al-Ghamdi pointed out that the municipality already has laws in place that require regulation speed bumps in places where pedestrian traffic is high, such as near schools and mosques and in shopping mall parking lots.

Citizens interested in reporting illegal speed bumps are encouraged to call 940. The city will also consider speed-bump installation requests from citizens.

Saleh Al-Ali, a Saudi resident in Al-Rawdah district, said he has had to fix his car twice so far this year after driving over illegal, haphazard speed bumps.

“Once I came home from work and my exhaust pipe was damaged from an illegal speed bump that wasn’t there the day before,” he said.

A Saudi resident of Al-Sulaimaniah district said: “Our vehicles are already suffering from the poorly maintained streets, and they cannot take more damage from those speed bumps.”

He said that many house owners are simply establishing speed bumps in front of their homes, caring less about public concern.

“The municipality should take strict measures against this phenomenon so that people could save some of the expense of having their car maintained,” he said.

Like elsewhere in the Kingdom, Jeddah is suffering from drivers that often disregard the rules of the road, including driving through neighborhoods at excessive speeds. It seems some residents have taken it upon themselves to slow down traffic near their homes. Now city officials want to ensure these measures are in accordance with international standards.