The tunnel is being built on the intersection between King Fahd Road and Industrial Road. The company building it has stopped all work and residents now fear that it might take several more years to complete.
King Fahd Road is considered one of the city’s major thoroughfares and the delay is now leading to huge traffic jams and accidents. It is thought the holdup is because of a disagreement between the contracting company and the municipality, Al-Madinah newspaper reported.
“I hope the municipality completes this project before we find ourselves trapped,” said local resident Abdullah Al-Qahtani. “Four years is a long time and this road is a major road. Unless the problem is fixed, drivers will have no choice but to continue suffering the traffic jams,” he added.
Abdullah Al-Amri, the owner of an engineering consultant office, said any ordinary person can notice the engineering mistakes on the road. “The street cannot serve residents of the city even if the tunnel is completed. Drivers will be forced to travel a long distance on King Fahd Road before they can find a U-turn that will take them to the other side of the road if they are coming from the east and the south. The same goes for residents coming from the north and west,” he said.
Local businesses have also been badly affected by the delay. A Saudi businessman said his business has suffered SR4 million in losses since the project began because his store is now inaccessible to shoppers. Other businessmen have closed their stores.
Saudi businessman Muhammad Al-Ghruwi said he has lost SR16 million since the start of the project after a number of storeowners decided to end their tenancy agreements at his commercial market that is situated close to the tunnel.
His market contains 75 stores. Al-Ghruwi said he now allows some businesses to stay for free while the project remains unfinished.
