Minister of Public Works and Housing Maher Abu Al-Samen said the ministry has adopted a proactive approach in recent years to managing road infrastructure, focusing on adapting to the impacts of climate change and drawing lessons from previous rainy seasons to strengthen the readiness of the road network and improve its ability to withstand extreme weather events.
اضافة اعلان
In a statement issued Saturday, Abu Al-Samen said the ministry no longer treats the effects of weather systems solely as emergencies. Instead, it has shifted toward addressing their underlying causes and reducing their recurrence through sustainable engineering solutions based on technical and field studies and risk assessments, in line with best practices in infrastructure management and climate adaptation.
He said preparations for the upcoming rainy season began immediately after the previous season ended. The ministry analyzed and classified observations and reports received from public works directorates, operations rooms and partner agencies, while identifying locations that had experienced rainwater accumulation, landslides or road closures. These data formed the basis for an implementation plan that included construction projects and preventive maintenance works across the Kingdom’s governorates.
According to the statement, the ministry is focusing on permanent engineering solutions for high-risk areas and locations most vulnerable to weather-related damage. These include constructing new box and pipe culverts, expanding existing culverts, rehabilitating water infrastructure, building retaining walls and gabion structures, installing stone riprap, lining waterways, and constructing side ditches and stormwater drainage channels.
The ministry said the projects reflect its efforts to develop more resilient infrastructure capable of withstanding the effects of climate change, particularly amid changing rainfall patterns and instances of heavy rainfall over short periods. This requires improved engineering solutions and more efficient stormwater drainage systems to ensure the sustainability of the road network and the safety of road users.
The ministry also implemented a series of central projects this year to address damage caused by weather systems in several governorates. These included protection works along Wadi Numaira and Wadi Araba roads in Karak, maintenance of the road leading to the tunnel adjacent to the Rice Factory in Aqaba, repairs to the Al-Dhara–Widea culvert collapse in Karak, protection works for bridges in the Dead Sea area, and a project to repair and maintain damage along Route 90 from Al-Bardini Bridge to Aqaba Container Terminal.
The projects also included repairs to the Wadi Shu’aib road collapse and landslides along the Royal Road in Tafileh and Karak governorates.
Abu Al-Samen said the projects went beyond rehabilitating damaged sites, incorporating structural solutions designed to prevent future collapses and erosion by reorganizing flood channels, increasing the capacity of drainage facilities and strengthening protective measures along roads and at high-risk locations.
JOD 23.3 Million in Projects
Ministry data showed that eight central projects were completed this year to address the impact of weather systems and landslides on the road network. In addition, 32 road projects were implemented at a total cost of JOD 23.3 million, covering more than 92 kilometers, along with eight lighting projects costing more than JOD 1 million.
As part of preparations for the rainy season, public works directorates across the governorates carried out an extensive campaign to clean and maintain stormwater drainage infrastructure. The campaign included cleaning box and pipe culverts across the Kingdom’s road network, which contains more than 5,400 such structures under the ministry’s jurisdiction.
The maintenance program aims to preserve the efficiency of drainage infrastructure and improve its readiness to handle rainfall.
The works also included constructing new culverts, expanding existing ones, installing drainage channels and side ditches, building retaining walls, and addressing dozens of high-risk locations identified based on observations recorded during previous rainy seasons.
These efforts were accompanied by enhanced readiness at operations rooms, as well as among technical teams, machinery and equipment. The ministry also completed cleaning works involving drainage inlets, culverts, valleys and flood channels to strengthen its ability to respond to different weather conditions and deal swiftly with emergencies during the rainy season.
Risk Assessment
Abu Al-Samen said the ministry continues to implement projects according to technical priorities based on risk assessments and the level of need at each location.
He stressed that protecting lives, maintaining the sustainability of the road network and improving infrastructure resilience against climate change are key priorities for the ministry in the coming period.
The ministry is also coordinating with relevant authorities to update databases covering locations most vulnerable to risks and to continue reviewing and updating hydrological studies based on changing conditions and field data. This, he said, will help develop engineering solutions suited to the growing climate-related challenges.
Abu Al-Samen stressed that the goal is not merely to repair damage after it occurs, but to continuously shift toward prevention, preparedness and strengthening infrastructure resilience.
Such efforts, he said, will improve road safety, preserve the continuity of the road network and help reduce damage and losses during future rainy seasons.
