Does anyone have any insider information as to why none of the rain-damaged roads have been fixed yet? A lot of the roads look like the picture above which is usually how the roads look like just before being resurfaced, but I’ve never seen so many roads looking like that and for this long.
The road in the picture above at least is flat, there are some roads that are covered in potholes and bumps. Yesterday I noticed two very large potholes opened up on the Gulf Road, potholes large enough to cause flat tires or damage wheels.
Something is definitely up, my guess is the government is looking for a new contractor since the last one did such a terrible job.
34 replies on “Why haven’t the roads still been fixed??”
I already asked the question to P.A.R.T. The last time I gave a comment on your post ” Road Surface Degradation”.. Obliviously the guys who work there dont read your blog or we would have heard from them by now 😉
Well the road above isn’t cuz of degradation, i don’t think so at least. Looks like the tar was scraped off to make way for new tar but this process usually happens back to back, never seen roads just stay like this for so long.
Try venturing outside of the 6th ring road, it was the norm even before the flooding.
Exactly, for many years too.
I am an engineer in the Roads Department of the MPW, our department has been classified as “P.A.R.T.” for a short while now, but we are not sure how long that will last. The agreement between the MPW and every other entity that should have joined PART, was not honored when PART was established. Anyway, the roads havent yet been fixed because everything is still operating at the usual slow pace of our government. Sometimes roads are fixed by having one contractor come in to scrape the asphalt off, then a different contractor comes in to lay the new asphalt. Also, PART is now in a mess of trying to figure out who will be leading us, not to mention trying to figure out whether PART will go back to MPW or not. So, while everything moves at a snail’s pace, things will be better, we just do not know when lol
so right now you guys basically got a contractor to scrape the asphalt off but are still waiting on another contractor to lay down the new tar?
Yeah I wouldn’t know exactly which parts were being handled by how many contractors (some roads may be handled completely by one contractor) but basically that’s whats happening. Contractors aren’t known for their speed and efficiency of work, combine that with lack of foresight, initiative, and bureaucratic structure of our department and ministry, and you get a stagnating, slow and sludgy department that’s running around like a headless chicken. We do get stuff done, but not at the speed or efficiency that is needed.
another question, say for example, right now on the gulf road two big potholes opened up. do they just stay there or is there like an emergency team or fund that can fix those potholes because they now cause a danger to drivers?
Good question. Road Maintenance is a separate dept, also responsible for cleaning out storm water drainage lines which were partially responsible for the floods. The heads of that dept have been prosecuted, at least as far as we know, for not upholding maintenance contracts. It seems road maintenance only happened when news reached that dept that there is something that needs fixing. Sadly, those two potholes will be there for a while i think, unless they are going to be fixed as part of the repaving due to degradation.
There were some craters on hwy 40 down south, and they fixed them up…kind of, at least you won’t lose your tyres on them like I did two weeks ago. 🙁
And I must give huge respect to traffic police, the potholes got so deep on 212 to Ahmadi that they themselves took a shovel and tried to at least fill it up with sand. I am sure it was not their job, but it was such a nice gesture.
Sorry, a side question, im curious to know What do you mean by who will lead you? I thought they assigned someone to replace the old director. Or was that roumers?
J.H. you are right they assigned a new leader but she is only temporary. Forcing the head engineer to resign was a good and bad thing. Some of the decisions he made during his “reign” are now affecting us, it’s a bit tricky to handle an authority that isn’t supposed to be an authority, quite confusing as to what the rules are, do we still belong to the ministry? who knows 🙂
Also, “Security Advisor” bro, I really do read the blog, and I had left a comment on the other post regarding road surface degradation that was posted about three weeks ago here on 248, i gave a clear explanation of asphalt types etc, but that comment was roundly pushed aside by almost everyone and it seemed like people just wanted argue about other commentators and how rude they were lol. It seems people sometimes like to join in on drama more than facts unfortunately hah
You guys should see the roads in Mangaf. Unbelievable.
Hey Jumanji .. noted and I feel your frustration . My vehicle feels it too. I replaced my windshield 2 weeks back because after all the crazy hits it took it finally cracked after being hit by a massive pebble that came flying through when a typical ass wipe in a souped up SUV went tearing pass me down the emergency lane on my left.
Sad part is that my vehicle is still getting spat on cause the roads have still not been repaired and I guess I am gonna have to shell out some more for a new windshield before the new year comes in .
Mark you have a point .. Road Repair ya Degradation either way the roads are fucked up and the authorities are sleeping over it.. Maybe the roads will get fixed when a big shot up in the government or a MP gets a rude wake call when his really expensive vehicle gets jolted by a massive pot hole while he is driving
True, owning a car here is just heartache day after day. Very true about the MP getting a wake call when his expensive vehicle gets damaged by the road, that seems to be the only way to get things moving in this country, free Kuwait 7ajy lol
I thought when an expensive car gets damaged they just replace it with a new model expensive car.
Sam… yes that applies to the people who have the income to do that lol, what about the other 99%?
Free advice: Do not replace your windshield till the entire mess is sorted out. You wouldn’t want your brand new windshield taking hits yet again… 99% of the roads I frequently take are just like the picture above – scraped, unpaved, giant craters and the likes.
Question though – how does cleaning of the residue sand work? Isn’t Baladiya responsible for that? There are roads that are perfectly fine but the mud accumulated from the rains has turned into sand. Needless to say, these areas have mini-sandstorms with the traffic all day.
That’s actually a good opportunity to ask this: do roads in that condition in the picture hurt the tires or the car in any way? It always feels wrong to be driving on the road like that.
No wont hurt the tires if proper air pressure in the tires. But they do steer your car depending on your tire pattern
Yes – they will damage your tyres – It is the equivalet of driving on sharp pebbles rather than a flat and smooth (almost) surface that a properly tarred road should be.
You lose a lot of tyre life that way.
It might degrade your tire faster if you drive for hours on these surfaces, but driving over one for a few seconds or a minute or two will have no affect on the tires.
Highway 30 between AbuHalifa and Mangaf has been like that for over 2 years. I think you will be waiting many many months until the roads are fixed (quite possibly years). They are sadly more incompetent than you can imagine.
I drive slow and still hear the pebbles hitting my car from below. ☹️
I am a biker. Its
I am a biker. Its real scary on roads these days.
Egaila Block 3 roads are worse than the roads in Afghanistan.
will we be able to make claims to replace our suspension on our cars soon!!!!
amazing that we’re having this conversation in one of the smallest and richest countries in the world #BadManagement
adly,
with richness comes many hidden hands that take their slices the crumbs too are significant for some ..what’s left on the plate ?
Probably just enough to show some window dressing maintenance to the boys in the auditing department that funds are being used for work as it was assigned to do 😉
Stop acting like u haven’t lived here. Get used to it
I bought a car in March, now it’s been sitting for 3 weeks, the roads are terrible. I’m thinking of selling it now as the roads are no where near being completed and driving in Mahboula/Mangaf is a nightmare.
It seems like a few years back the road damage was fixed quickly although not using the best materials obviously, but work was actually being done.
“since the last one did such a terrific job.”
you have really changed over the years….
Pray an earthquake does not happen here !!
https://www.theverge.com/2018/12/8/18128983/alaska-earthquake-roads-fixed-anchorage-damage