Sunday: Extensive winter campaign to inspect vehicle roadworthiness
Amman3 min read
Share
Over the past 24 hours, the Highway Patrol intercepted a freight vehicle on Airport Road carrying 21 passengers in its cargo bed, while also responding to two rollover accidents involving freight vehicles on the Safawi-Ruwaished and Azraq-Safawi roads.
Operations Room Officer at the Highway Patrol Department, Captain Mahdi Al-Hamoud, said on Monday that patrols stopped the vehicle on Airport Road after it was used to transport passengers contrary to its designated purpose, noting that transporting 21 individuals inside a cargo bed poses a severe danger to their lives and could lead to injuries or fatalities in the event of an accident.
According to Al-Hamoud, legal action was taken against the driver, while the patrol arranged alternative transit for the passengers via a public transport vehicle.
In an accident that occurred during the early morning hours, a freight vehicle overturned off the carriageway on the Safawi-Ruwaished road beyond the Ashqaf security station, causing only material damage with no injuries reported.
At 4:30 a.m., another freight vehicle overturned on the Azraq-Safawi road, before the Tal Hassan security post, resulting in one moderate injury transported to Azraq Medical Center, while the vehicle came to rest off the main roadway.
Winter campaign to inspect vehicle roadworthiness
As part of preparations for the winter season, a nationwide campaign to verify the roadworthiness of vehicles on internal and external roads will kick off next Sunday, according to Al-Hamoud.
The campaign aims to detect technical defects and deficiencies that could endanger drivers or road users, granting motorists whose vehicles require rectification a one-week grace period to fix the issues without being ticketed.
The inspections will cover freight and cargo trucks, medium passenger vehicles, buses, and light vehicles, focusing on tire condition, lighting, side and rear windows, and any mechanical or technical faults affecting road safety.
The inspection campaign is being conducted by traffic departments and the Royal Department for Environmental Protection.
Patrol deployment to curb dangerous violations
Concurrently with the morning traffic rush, patrols were deployed under the direct supervision of heads of divisions and branches at the entrances and exits of Amman and surrounding governorates, focusing on violations that compromise road safety, including distracted driving, mobile phone use, carrying excess passengers, and lane and freight violations.
On Monday morning, traffic flow was brisk on Airport Road and Madaba Bridge heading toward Amman, as well as from the southern gate beneath Madaba Bridge toward the capital.
The Desert Highway experienced active traffic in the Al-Abyad area, particularly for freight vehicles, while traffic was moderate near the Zmalah security post heading south.
On the Irbid-Amman highway, cameras at the Sail Jerash station monitored brisk traffic toward the capital, compared to below-average traffic toward the northern governorates.
At the Ras Al-Naqab post and the southern terminus of the Desert Highway, freight movement was southbound, while the Amman-Zarqa highway saw heavy and active traffic heading toward Zarqa.
Traffic was also active in front of the Hashemite University on the Mafraq-Zarqa road, and at the start of Airport Road in front of Al-Jizah heading toward Amman, compared to moderate traffic on the Irbid-Amman road in front of Philadelphia University heading toward the northern governorates.
The Highway Patrol urged drivers to inspect their vehicles and ensure their technical roadworthiness ahead of winter, adhere to traffic regulations, and avoid violations that jeopardize road safety.
