Local authorities have started demolishing more than 4,000 properties in seven city districts.

The King Abdul Aziz Road, with a total length of 4 km and width of 80 meters, is the second largest project aimed at easing traffic jams in Makkah. It passes through seven old districts, including Al-Hindawi, Al-Tandbawi, Al-Rusaifa, Al-Zahraa and Al-Nuzha and covers a total area of 1.17 million square meters.

The road runs parallel to the Umm Al-Qura Road beginning from the western side of the Grand Mosque and ending at Al-Dawareq Square at the entrance of Jeddah Expressway.

Heavy machinery including bulldozers and cranes are engaged in demolition work that started in Al-Zaharain district.

Scores of trucks were also seen in the area moving debris from the site to a nearby dumping area, Al-Madinah Arabic daily reported on Tuesday.

Even though compensation was distributed among all property owners in the district well before demolition work started, some of them still remain at their homes in protest at what they say are inadequate payouts. They decried unfair evaluations of their properties and demanded increased compensation.

Ahmad Jabali is one of the residents who refused to leave his home.

“I am in favor of development. However, this should not be at expense of our genuine rights. The Committee for Evaluation of Properties has fixed compensation at SR3,000 per square meter and an aggregate amount of SR1,000 for demolition. The value fixed for my two-story residence was SR1 million,” he said. “This amount is quite unfair for a property located at a prime location of the project. I still hope that the committee will review its decision and increase the amount to at least what has been paid to some of my neighbors. I don’t know the reason why the committee treated me in an unfair manner.”

Jabali urged the concerned authorities to intervene in his case.

Omar Siraj Al-Shaibi, another resident, said that he would not leave his house as the company developing the area gave him a grace period until procedures were completed to distribute compensation. “However I now face forcible eviction. The compensation fixed by the concerned committee is quite insufficient to buy another plot and construct a house there,” he said.

Commenting on the issue, Dr. Sami bin Yassin Borhumain, secretary general of the Makkah Construction and Development Company, said the executive committee for implementing the project is keen to protect the rights of the owners of all properties expropriated for the project.

“If a property owner has any complaint about the evaluation, he can approach the Court of Grievances to get justice. If the court’s verdict is in favor of the owner, then the company would be legally obliged to pay up,” he said.

The planned monorail network is designed to pass through this road, in addition to pedestrian tunnels leading to the Haram. The project, located in southern Makkah, starts from the entrance to the holy city and ends at Jabl Omar adjacent to the Grand Mosque.

The total compensation fund is over SR6 billion. Implementation of the project also coincides with work to modernize the seven underdeveloped districts where the road runs through.