Causes of Traffic Congestion in Abu Dhabi - Coursework Example

Running Head: TRAFFIC CONGESTION IN ABU DHABI Traffic congestion in Abu Dhabi Name Institution Date Introduction Abu Dhabi has been facing the impending challenge of Traffic congestion. Spending a huge amount of hours when stuck in traffic and even finding difficulty when it comes to packing is not a new aspect in this particular city. As one of the dominant cities within the UEA and the Gulf region, Abu Dhabi has over the years experienced speedy transformation in terms of economic, social and physical structures. Consequently, traffic congestion remains a complex problem. This particular report presents the causes and effects of congestion in the city. In addition the report will also analyze the condition of traffic congestion in Abu Dhabi. Causes of traffic congestion in Abu Dhabi The Department of Planning and Economy (DPE) Weekly Report (2008) reveals that one of the causes of traffic congestion in Abu Dhabi is linked to the enormous economic expansion. According to the DPE Weekly Report (2008) economic expansion in the city and UEA in general has accelerated the need for more labor. As a result there has been an influx of foreign workers, based on the fact that their labor is vital in the completing a variety of existing economic projects. Recent statistics highlight that with the increase in the revenue attained from oil earnings and economic expansion, the demand for oversea workers has increased in sectors such as the service industry, real estate, trade and construction. This has resulted to an increase in the population, leading to congestion on the on the roads and other transport facilities. What is evident is that as Abu Dhabi continues experience economic growth, it is projected that by 2015 the population of the city will hold approximately 2.5 million people (DPE Weekly Report, 2008). This sort of population will therefore definitely increase the level of congestion in the city and further a strain in the infrastructure in the city. Congestion in Abu Dhabi has also been spearheaded by the scenario whereby the existing roads in the city have gone beyond their holding capability. Although Abu Dhabi has experienced massive economic growth, the existing internal roads are incapable of holding the new fleet of cars that enter into the roads year after year. The DPE Weekly Report (2008) further highlights that traffic jam in the city of Abu Dhabi is not only an occurrence of morning and afternoon peek hours, instead, even during the weekends, traffic jam is enormous. An additional problem is that of finding parking space. Due to the inadequacy of packing space many landlords have embarked in taking advantage of this critical need, essentially for people who have to work until late hours. Landlords in Abu Dhabi charge extra fees on packing space, which further increases the level of burdens on tenants who already pay exorbitant amounts in terms of rent (The DPE Weekly Report, 2008). In addition, the congestion problem in Abu Dhabi has also been spearheaded by absence of an efficient system of public transport. Apart from personal vehicles another prevailing transport means in the city is the use of taxi cabs. The city operates using two types of taxi services ; the old taxi cabs which are usually operated by UAE nationals and those operated by companies as proposed by section 19 of the 2006 transport regulation. The number of taxis on the roads has continued to increase. Despite of the increase in the number of taxi cabs, the population growth does not actually match the increase in the number of taxis. Acquiring a taxi in certain areas of the city is a day in day out hustle for many residents, essentially during peak hours. Many taxi drivers completely refuse to carry passengers to certain areas of the city, in order to avoid congestion due to traffic (The DPE Weekly Report, 2008). The graph below displays how the three displayed aspects have contributed to traffic congestion in Abu Dhabi; contributory factors Percentage contribution population 50 Increase in number of vehicles 30 Lack of efficient transport system 20 As indicated by the graph a huge percentage of traffic congestion is influenced by the increase in population which takes up 50%. Secondly the increase in the number of vehicles on the roads also greatly influences congestion taking up 30%. The absence of an efficient transport system also contributes to congestion which is about 20%, based on the fact that the UAE government has to some level adopted certain measures such as road expansion in order to resolve traffic congestion. Effects of Traffic Congestion A study conducted by Abdulla et, al (2011) to investigate urban traffic accidents in Abu Dhabi revealed that traffic congestion has brought about adverse effects to the city in terms of increasing the number of accidents in the city. The study was centered on investigating the characteristics of the clearance time used in accidents scenes. The data collected from the records of Abu Dhabi Collision and the Federal Traffic Statistics System indicated that there was an increase in the number of vehicles involved in the accidents, which is attributed to traffic congestion. Furthermore getting to the accident scene and also clearing the scene was actually difficult. From the study, what is evident is that traffic congestion has spearheaded an increase in the number accidents in Abu Dhabi (Abdulla et, al, 2011). Another dominant effect of traffic congestion in Abu Dhabi is the strain on infrastructure. Based on the fact that the number of cars on the roads has increased due to an increased population level, the DPE Weekly Report, (2008) argues that there has not been adequate infrastructure expansion essentially in terms of roads in order to hold the existing number of cars. This has therefore resulted to a strain on the infrastructure essential the roads According to the Oxford Business Group (2009) , despite of the rapid increase in the development of Abu Dhabi, road congestion has actually been exerting a heavy toll on the economy of the city. For instance a report presented by the DED proposed that substantial investments should be made on road infrastructure in order to prevent the economic losses that are linked traffic congestion. The DED report reveals that 51.36 billion losses are encountered every year due to traffic congestion. Economic losses are encountered when people waste a great amount of time on traffic jams; as a result, losses are incurred on the competitive investment and economic growth of the city. Condition of traffic congestion in Abu Dhabi According to the Abu Dhabi department of transport (2012) the city has been experiencing a rapid increase in terms of traffic congestion. As indicated by the graph and table ( 2 and 3) below , there has been a rapid increase in the population of Abu Dhabi in a span of five years. In addition the number of vehicles on the roads has also increased. As indicated by the graph, the population and number of vehicles have adopted an increasing trend. As a result there is need to adopt adequate measures to resolve the problem of congestion. Figure (2 and 3) years Population growth Increase in No. of vehicles 2007 672563 5,206 2008 717,400 8,000 2009 896,751 10,000 2010 1,457,220 10,400 2011 1,524,476 11,000 Recommendations The Abu Dhabi department has been working towards alleviating traffic congestion. For instance one of the recent initiatives was to invite a leading international consultant to undertake a study that can provide effective recommendations to solve the problem of congestion (Abu Dhabi Department of Transport, 2012). This report recommends that Abu Dhabi should adopt a system of transport that can elevate the problem of traffic congestion in the long run. A more simple strategy is to adopt a simple means of transport such as cycling. If cycling can be introduced among most of the passengers who use taxis and those who own individual vehicles, congestion will be reduced on the roads and also the need for parking will also be lowered and thus reducing the general rate congestion. Conclusion The above discussion has presented three crucial aspects as the contributory factors towards traffic congestion in Abu Dhabi. These include; increase in population, an increase in number of vehicles and inadequate infrastructure. The report has also highlighted some of the implications of traffic congestion which include an increase in accident levels, a strain on infrastructure and economic losses. The report proposes that Abu Dhabi should actually implement a simple and comprehensive means of transport such cycling which will reduce congestion through the reduction of number cars on the roads and the packing problem. References Abdulla M, and Dilum, D, Bird , R.(2011). Analyzing Clearance Time of Urban Traffic Accidents in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, with Hazard-Based Duration Modeling Method . Journal on Transportation Research. 22(29),p Oxford Business Group. (2009). The Report: Abu Dhabi 2009. Oxford Business Group. The Department of Transport.(2012). Retrieved DPE Weekly Report. (2008). Traffic congestion in Abu Dhabi city. UAE Interact. Retrieved Read More