Jeddah residents have expressed frustration at the estimated 5 million visitors to the port city this summer.
Hani Rasheed, a local resident, told Arab News: “I have recently become very upset due to the lack of parking at my apartment building where I have been living for the past five years.”
He explained the problem started this month after two new furnished apartment buildings for rent were built near his home.
He added: "Since summer began, I am constantly finding cars parked either in my personal parking spot or on the street just behind my car, blocking me in."
He said he confronted the owners of the offending vehicles many times as well as spoken to his landlord, but to no avail.
Other residents such as Raja Al-Madani say even keeping an appointment to see the doctor can be a source of stress due to the influx of summer visitors.
“I have had an appointment for about five months, however, when arriving at the hospital I was asked to wait for nearly three hours due to the number of walk-in visitors that created a queue to see the same doctor.”
She said keeping patients with appointments waiting was unfair and that the Kingdom's hospitals and clinics should change their policies to take care of appointment holders before walk-in patients as a common courtesy.
Traffic too has become a cause for concern throughout the day as more motorists trying to avoid construction projects throughout the city take to the expressway.
Mohammed Al- Mansour said: “My home is near the expressway, so I decided to take it as I wanted to get a few things from the downtown area.”
He added that he ended up driving for two hours due to traffic jams.
As a result of the city's annual congestion many Jeddah families opt to spend the summer holiday abroad or merely stay home as much as possible.
Mai Mua'mena said: “We were planning to go to the UAE for the summer to avoid the tourists, but found that that was not financially possible and have since changed our plans to visit Egypt instead.”
