Riyadh metro: No pain, no gain

In Riyadh today, we are going through intolerable traffic congestion with many closures and detours. They all are adding pressure to our daily life. These problems are due to the ongoing work on the Riyadh Metro Project. However, what is important is that we have reached the point of coexisting easily with this status quo. When the project was launched first, many said that we would not be able to adapt to the situation, but they were wrong. In fact, this temporary adaptation is an indication that the policy of preparing the society was a very successful one. Today, everyone has either to manage his time in a proper way, or leave the city to live somewhere else.
We are now on the threshold of the third year of the metro journey. Work is carried out with different paces in accordance with construction challenges on the ground.
Human nature varies from one person to another in conforming to emerging situations or revolting against them. The question now is: Should we take it for granted that this adaptation will continue forever? Do we expect some improvements in the progress of the project? Or should we expect that the future would be more difficult and complicated? These are but a few questions that worry the capital’s residents and that they have the right to receive proper clarifications.
The Higher Riyadh Development Authority is the competent party, which can judge as where things are heading now and in the future. Consequently, they have the necessary information that we are looking for. From the beginning, they were very clear and said that things would not be that easy and that everybody should be tolerant and give them chance to complete the project with all its details.
In fact they are frank and have nothing to hide from us. They are fighting against time and open challenges. But in this chaotic situation, there are two main factors that should be taken into consideration to ensure success of the operation. First, cooperation by all participants and parties concerned with the execution of the project, either the private or public sector. Second is the cooperation of the residents either by following instructions and not violating them or by advising or guiding the authority regarding any situation.
What we need most today is more transparency and awareness. We need more novel and creative ideas and cooperation from everybody. The authority must, in the meantime, develop its communication channels to provide and receive accurate information and foil any attempt to discredit the Kingdom through rumors.
I wish the authority would organize an open dialogue so that the city residents would be informed of the developments and what would be achieved in the coming two years. The private sector, the main beneficiary of the project after completion, should also get involved in the awareness campaign.
The good news is that the project is moving in the right direction. Today’s hardships will be stories to tell our children.