A knowledgeable source at Jeddah's Secretariat said major private companies are not coming forward to bid for maintenance projects in the region.
The source, who preferred to remain anonymous, said the companies do not venture to enter the maintenance project bidding process because money allocations for the implementation are small, and maintenance operations are built on old standards and estimations. “The prices vary according to the willingness of small firms to take on such projects,” the source said.
On the other hand, big companies’ prices are “exaggerated,” according to the source. “The problem can be solved by upgrading the levels of the bidding companies and increasing the money allocations to some reasonable amounts, in addition to developing the old standards”, said the source.
Regarding the latest heavy rains and the projects, Abdulmalik Al-Junaidi, chairman of the Municipal Council in Jeddah, said the Secretariat hampered by the small amount of funds allocated for the maintenance of the rainwater drainage system.
“The Secretariat makes all possible efforts to keep streets and neighborhoods clear of floodwater after rains, deploying hundreds of workers and tens of water trucks to pump out water. Thirty rapid intervention centers are also activated,” he added.
Commenting on the effects of the recent rainfalls on the projects being implemented by the municipality, he said that the projects were definitely affected, but the flow of vehicular traffic on overpasses and in underpasses was unaffected.”
Al-Junaidi also said the latest session of the civic body discussed its readiness for the rainy season. “Aramco has implemented projects to keep rainwater from nearby valleys flooding neighborhoods in the east of Jeddah,” the official commented, adding that inside Jeddah itself, no new projects were implement to channel rainwater except the main water channels to the north, south and center of the city.