Pedestrians avoiding ‘dirty’ Amman footbridges

AMMAN — Some Amman residents are reluctant to use the capital’s footbridges to cross busy highways because “they are not pedestrian-friendly”.

Bayan Odeh, a student at Princess Sumaya University for Technology, says she prefers to walk to university but sometimes struggles to find suitable stairs at the bridges installed to help pedestrians cross congested streets. 

“We have many pedestrian bridges [in Amman], but some of them are old and cannot be used because residents might injure themselves,” she told The Jordan Times on Wednesday.

Ibrahim Salaymeh, a father of two, told The Jordan Times the reason many pedestrians prefer to take the streets instead is because the overpasses are dirty.  

“I understand why pedestrians do not choose the bridges to cross streets and move from one area to another… I have two children, and just like all parents, I feel the unclean environment on bridges could endanger their well-being,” he said.

Fadia Edwan, of the Greater Amman Municipality’s construction department, said the GAM floated a tender to start maintenance work for around 10 pedestrian overpasses around the capital.

“Some bridges require basic repairs. We will start working on them in order to develop a pedestrian-friendly city and to encourage citizens to take the bridges for their own safety,” she told The Jordan Times.

The sanitation workers of each area in Amman are required to clean the bridges every two days, the official said.

“We asked those working in different areas to monitor and pick up the rubbish on the bridges to provide residents with environmentally friendly areas,” Edwan added.