PART still ignores manhole problem; ‘Lives at risk’
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KUWAIT CITY, Dec 15: Does inaction and negligence lead to the loss of lives and the killing of innocents? The answer is definitely yes. However, the proof requires official documents or the occurrence of disasters in order to awaken the conscience of the concerned officials, reports Al-Qabas daily. The reality confirms the opposite, as inaction seems the master of the situation. It was discovered that the Public Authority for Roads and Transportation (PART) was aware of the deterioration of the manholes and the loosening of the manhole covers one year before the accident that led to the death of a young citizen.
Despite the warnings sent to the Maintenance Department by specialists who stressed that “manholes portend a disaster”, PART stopped the work order that was supposed to remedy the problem, and refused to spend KD 66,000 for repairing the defect. It chose to leave the dilapidated facilities, which eventually led to the death of one of the citizens.
The reality indicates that the lives of thousands of road users seems to not be worth a few thousand dinars to the Ministry of Public Works and PART, even though the budget of the two parties this year alone is KD 1 billion and 108 million. To be specific, the lives of thousands of people using the Fahaheel Road (Road 30), which witnessed a tragic accident on October 12 that killed a young man in the prime of life, did not seem worth even an amount of KD 66,000 in the eyes of the PART officials. PART, which is the authority responsible for the maintenance of roads, refused to bear this amount to save the situation, and instead preferred to leave the roads in a bad condition, thereby leading to the accident. In December 2014, PART signed a general maintenance contract for roads, including parts of the Fahaheel Expressway (King Abdulaziz Road), at a value of KD 5.4 million.
The contract was supposed to be completed contractually in December 2017, but the work was extended until completion. It was initially received by a committee of six engineers of the Ministry of Public Works on March 19, 2018. In accordance with the minutes of the meeting, the committee disclosed the contract work and ensured its implementation in the form stipulated contractual agreement, thus beginning the five-year warranty period.
In April 2018, it was agreed between the Traffic Engineering and PART to start converting the left lane into a fast lane for six highways, including King Abdulaziz Road from the Sixth Ring to the Third Ring Road, in both directions. On November 5, 2020, the Head of the Planning Department for Maintenance Works at PART addressed the Director of the Highway Maintenance Department, explaining that it was discovered, after converting the left lane into a fast lane, that the left lanes contain manholes for services and that because the vehicles are traveling over the manhole covers, the covers were shifting out of their place and falling into lanes, which could result to traffic accidents. He wrote, “In order to preserve traffic safety, replacing these covers with heavy-duty ones has become a necessity for the protection of vehicles and lives. Therefore, we attach with the letter the work order for replacing the covers and we are waiting for approval”.
According to documents obtained by the daily, Work Order No. 49 was supposed to be extended from November 8, 2020 to May 6, 2021 to replace 330 manholes and carry out other work related to the process, at a total value of KD 66,305. In July 2021, i.e., after the end of the period allotted to the work order but without starting it despite the seriousness of the previously known situation, head of the maintenance supervision department in PART addressed the head of the planning department for maintenance work regarding the separation of Work Order No. 49 for the replacement of the existing manhole covers located on the left shoulder of the King Abdulaziz Al Saud Road.
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