Jerash-Amman road revamp begins after landslide

AMMAN — The Ministry of Public Works and Housing on Tuesday said it has started the reconstruction work of the Jerash-Amman highway, where a landslide blocked the roadway, forcing authorities to reroute traffic.

Minister of Public Works Sami Halaseh said the incident happened due to “geological reasons that are likely to occur in that area”, and the road will be reopened after nearly two months.

“Following the landslide, we announced a detour. It is a natural result, as many areas in Jordan have vulnerable mountains such as Naour, Karak, and the Dead Sea,” he told The Jordan Times.

As spring approaches and temperatures rise, the ministry is planning to divide the revamping work into different stages, where each stage will take around 10 days, with a total average of 75 metres covered. 

The whole project of revamping will take around 70 working days, the minister said. 

He said the detour was opened within 48 hours after the landslide, explaining that water stored in the landmass caused soil softening and resulted in the landslide. 

A Jerash resident who takes the route daily to his office in Amman said the detour is on the same road of the landslide, with a road extension as an alternative lane.

“It’s not supposed to take extra time; however, it now takes around one to two hours for a 5km distance. It used to take around 45 minutes from Jerash to Amman before the rockslide occurred,” the resident told The Jordan Times.

He said the alternative road takes more time since it is a narrow downhill with a sharp curve down the street, which requires motorists to slow down, causing a traffic gridlock on the alternative lane until they reach Mastabah area after the detour.