Calls have been renewed for urgent road upgrades in the Tubli commercial district to ease daily traffic bottlenecks along Street 23, a vital artery locally known as the ‘Services Street’.
The road stretches from Jid Ali to the Tubli Sewage Treatment Plant and is identified in aerial survey maps as Road 11.
Despite serving densely populated residential neighbourhoods and a busy commercial strip, the road remains a single carriageway in each direction, struggling to cope with mounting traffic.
The route connects key areas including Tubli, Tubli Housing, Al Hujair, Al Jubaillat, Al Kawrah, Jid Ali, Jirdab, and suburbs branching from Isa Town. It also provides access to several public facilities, shops, mosques and service centres that attract constant daily traffic.
Motorists have pointed to multiple problematic intersections along the stretch. These include the junction with Road 725 leading to municipal buildings and old Tubli, the intersection with Road Three serving south Tubli and north Al Hujair and Al Jubaillat, and Road 5 which links to the eastern entrance of Al Kawrah and the western access to Tubli Housing. Smaller branches add to the congestion as vehicles enter and exit the main road unpredictably.
Residents say that before Tubli Housing was opened, there were announcements that the road would be developed ahead of occupancy. However, no visible work has taken place and the situation has allegedly worsened as the population and commercial activity increased.
The issue has now reached the Capital Trustees Board, which has formally referred the matter to Works Ministry Under-Secretary Shaikh Mishal bin Mohammed Al Khalifa.
Board chairman Saleh Tarradah, an area resident, said the scale of the problem was impossible to ignore.
“We have received repeated complaints from residents and business owners, although frankly the congestion is visible to anyone using the road,” he said. “This is a commercial and residential hub that cannot continue to operate with a single-lane road in each direction.”
Mr Tarradah revealed the board was informed that engineering designs for the road expansion had already been completed.
Mr Tarradah
“We have been told that the designs are ready and that implementation is linked to budget availability. We are pressing for this to be prioritised because the delay is affecting thousands of daily road users,” he added.
According to motorists, peak-hour delays along the stretch can reach up to 40 minutes, particularly near the commercial cluster and service centres.
Board member Dr Abdulhassan Al Dairy stressed the urgency of intervention.
Dr Al Dairy
“We have heard from several residents who are frustrated. They have to plan their daily movements around this bottleneck,” he said. “This road serves vital neighbourhoods and facilities, and the current layout is no longer suitable for the volume of traffic it carries.”
He called for widening the road to two lanes in each direction, reorganising entry and exit points, and redesigning intersections to ensure smoother flow.
The district is also home to the newly opened headquarters of the Capital Trustees Board, further increasing traffic in the area.
Residents hope the project will be fast-tracked and included among priority infrastructure developments to restore traffic flow and reduce congestion in one of the Capital Governorate’s busiest corridors.
mohammed@gdnmedia.bh
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