Parking problems lead to traffic jams in Jalalabad

JALALABAD (Pajhwok): Residents of Jalalabad, the capital of eastern Nangarhar province, link growing traffic congestion to former officials’ failure to build parking facilities in high-rise buildings.

Residents believe every building should have a parking lot in its basement. This will help ease traffic congestion in the city that often witnesses snarl-ups.

Atiqullah Ahmadzai, a resident of Jalalabad, said over the past few years several high-rise buildings had been constructed in the city that brought beauty to the city but unplanned and unmapped construction caused crowed and traffic congestion in the city.

In all cities parking facilities are constructed in the basement of every building but in Jalalabad the basement is allocated to shops, he said.

Another inhabitant, Jahanzeb, slammed municipality officials for allowing owners to use building basement spaces for commercial purposes

Those officials allegedly received bribes from building owners.

Not only common citizens blame former officials for irregularities and corruption, civil society holds a similar view.

Civil society activist Hayatullah Hameed blamed municipality officials for allowing building owners to use basement spaces for commercial purposes.

The Jalalabad Municipality blamed corruption in the previous regime for the current problems being experienced by the provincial capital.

Municipality spokesman Bakht Jan said talks were underway on devising a plan for the construction of parking lots in these buildings.

In the past as well, people would complain regarding the lack of parking facilities and traffic congestion in Jalalabad.

nh/mud