Eight tunnels to ease traffic in Makkah

Eight new tunnels, including two for pedestrians, are under construction in the holy city of Makkah to ensure free flow of pilgrims and vehicles, press reports said yesterday.
“The tunnels are constructed as part of King Abdullah Project for Expansion of Makkah and holy sites,” one source said, adding that
they would be ready for use shortly.
The project includes construction of three emergency tunnels for rapid evacuation purposes, two tunnels for sewage and electricity and one for services.
The pedestrian tunnels will have a width of 16 meters each and a height of 8.3 meters.
Both tunnels located side by side, with a length of 740 meters, originate from the side of Masaa (the running area between Safa and Marwa) and ends at Hajoun, the source said.
In a related development, Water and Electricity Minister Abdullah Al-Hussayen said the King Abdullah Zamzam Water Distribution Center in Makkah is working round the clock and throughout the year and can supply 200,000 bottles (10 liters each) daily.
The center, which was set up at a cost of SR 700 million, has four production lines while its tanks have a storage capacity of 36,000 cubic meters.
“We are planning to construct another storage tank with a capacity of 40,000 cubic meters,” the minister said.
Total production of the center reached 1.8 million cubic meters since its inception three years ago, of which 1.3 million cubic meters was pumped to the two holy mosques.
Last year it distributed 650,000 bottles of water among the Haj pilgrims.