Petra development project aims to reroute traffic and spread tourism income in Wadi Musa
last updated: 55m ago
A development project in the Al-Dara area of Wadi Musa is being built to ease traffic pressure around Petra's tourist street while widening the number of local businesses that earn from visitor traffic, according to the Petra Development and Tourism Region Authority.اضافة اعلان
The site sits between the tourist street and the centre of Wadi Musa, a position the authority says allows it to manage vehicle and pedestrian flow, spread commercial activity away from a few congested points, and open ground for future tourism services.
Adnan Al-Sawair, chairman of the board of commissioners of the Petra Development and Tourism Region Authority, said the project fits the authority's plan to upgrade infrastructure and services across the Petra region so that the environment around the archaeological site matches its standing as one of the New Seven Wonders of the World.
Al-Sawair described the works as one of a series of programmes intended to lift the region's competitiveness and improve residents' quality of life. The project regulates vehicle and pedestrian movement, adds integrated facilities, and creates a more orderly setting for commercial and tourism activity, he said.
Infrastructure is the lever the authority uses to widen local benefit from tourism, Al-Sawair argued. New commercial units, in his account, give residents an entry point for investment in traditional crafts, tourism products, cafes, restaurants and support services, keeping revenue inside the community.
Shops, road and plaza
The project includes 71 shops along the road, 37 of them finished in the first phase, Al-Sawair confirmed. He said the remaining units should complete the area's commercial layout and curb unplanned building that could undermine either the visitor experience or the site's character.
Allocating those shops under clear and fair criteria matters, Al-Sawair added, because it determines whether young people, small business owners and artisans gain access to visitor traffic and develop products that reflect Petra's identity rather than repeating standard souvenir offerings.
An alternative road running roughly 800 metres beside the tourist street forms the traffic element of the scheme. Tourism experts consulted by Al-Ghad said the route should ease congestion at the busiest points and open a second approach to tourist and commercial sites, at a time when tour buses, private cars and residents compete for the same space.
The design opens a ten-metre-wide street above the shops, with pedestrian walkways, rest areas and sidewalks that separate vehicles from visitors on foot. The same experts said the route could also function as a development axis linking parts of Wadi Musa, redistributing commercial activity and improving access to parking and public facilities.
Parking is covered by a two-level facility with capacity for up to 70 vehicles, along with a new intersection connecting it to the tourist street and the alternative road. The authority said the parking will reduce ad hoc roadside stopping and improve vehicle flow, provided it is paired with directional signage, live information on available spaces and managed entry for buses at peak hours. Work on that management system is under way, according to the authority.
The public square, or plaza, is being extended by 140 metres after about 90 metres were completed in the first phase. Landscaping, green areas and planting beds are included, creating a space the authority says can host social, cultural and tourism events. Service facilities comprise six public restrooms for men and women and two designed for people with disabilities.
Local reaction
Tour guide Mohammed Hilalat said the project will prove itself when visitors move more easily and safely from their accommodation to the visitor centre or the tourist street.
Tourists judge a destination by the clarity of its pathways, the cleanliness of its facilities and the ease of finding information and services, not by the archaeological site alone, Hilalat explained. He singled out walkways and rest areas as important for older visitors, families and anyone who needs more time to move around.
Merchant Ahmad Nawafleh said the local community sees an opportunity to revive the market, but that the outcome depends on how shops are allocated, what rents are charged, which activities are licensed and whether residents are given priority.
Repeating the same products across the units would add no value, Nawafleh argued. A mix of local crafts, restaurants, cafes, digital tourism services, information points and agricultural produce could make the area a destination rather than a gateway.
Community activist Khitam Al-Mashaleh said Wadi Musa needs public spaces that residents feel are theirs as much as visitors'. The plaza will succeed, Al-Mashaleh explained, if it accommodates families, young people and children and runs a regular calendar of activities that extends beyond tourist seasons and official occasions.
She also warned that green areas need a funded plan for maintenance, irrigation and cleaning, and plants suited to Petra's climate and water supply, so that landscaping does not become an operating burden.
Tourism expert Fairouz Al-Hasanat welcomed the accessible restrooms as a sign of intent but said accessibility has to cover the full route, from parking, sidewalks and ramps through the shops and plaza to signage and information. Petra could offer a model for inclusive tourism, Al-Hasanat added, if the needs of older visitors, people with disabilities and families are built into the design from the start.
Suleiman Al-Amrat, a resident, said development in historic cities calls for visual restraint, with new facilities serving the existing setting rather than competing with it. Consistent materials, controlled sign sizes and unified design elements would give the area a coherent character, Al-Amrat explained. He added that native or low-water plants and carefully planned lighting could improve safety at night without producing light pollution.
Abdullah Al-Farajat, a young resident, said the project's value to young people depends on training, funding and fair access to investment opportunities. Residents know the area and can deal with visitors, Al-Farajat noted, but parallel programmes in languages, guiding, digital marketing and food service management would make the difference between a facility that functions and a destination that delivers quality service.
Balancing new build against Petra's character
Al-Sawair acknowledged the difficulty of building in Petra, where any project has to reconcile modern service requirements with the colours, materials and massing of the surroundings. The landscape around the archaeological site, he said, extends the impression visitors form of the city.
Success will not be measured by the length of road built or the number of shops and parking spaces, Al-Sawair said, but by how far those elements strengthen Petra's identity rather than creating a detached commercial zone, which puts weight on architectural detail, signage, lighting, colour and street furniture.
He added that the project may attract new investment, raise the value of surrounding commercial sites, and generate jobs during construction and lasting employment in the shops and services afterwards.
Source: Al-Ghad, reporting by Ahmad Al-Rawashdeh.
The site sits between the tourist street and the centre of Wadi Musa, a position the authority says allows it to manage vehicle and pedestrian flow, spread commercial activity away from a few congested points, and open ground for future tourism services.
Adnan Al-Sawair, chairman of the board of commissioners of the Petra Development and Tourism Region Authority, said the project fits the authority's plan to upgrade infrastructure and services across the Petra region so that the environment around the archaeological site matches its standing as one of the New Seven Wonders of the World.
Al-Sawair described the works as one of a series of programmes intended to lift the region's competitiveness and improve residents' quality of life. The project regulates vehicle and pedestrian movement, adds integrated facilities, and creates a more orderly setting for commercial and tourism activity, he said.
Infrastructure is the lever the authority uses to widen local benefit from tourism, Al-Sawair argued. New commercial units, in his account, give residents an entry point for investment in traditional crafts, tourism products, cafes, restaurants and support services, keeping revenue inside the community.
Shops, road and plaza
The project includes 71 shops along the road, 37 of them finished in the first phase, Al-Sawair confirmed. He said the remaining units should complete the area's commercial layout and curb unplanned building that could undermine either the visitor experience or the site's character.
Allocating those shops under clear and fair criteria matters, Al-Sawair added, because it determines whether young people, small business owners and artisans gain access to visitor traffic and develop products that reflect Petra's identity rather than repeating standard souvenir offerings.
An alternative road running roughly 800 metres beside the tourist street forms the traffic element of the scheme. Tourism experts consulted by Al-Ghad said the route should ease congestion at the busiest points and open a second approach to tourist and commercial sites, at a time when tour buses, private cars and residents compete for the same space.
The design opens a ten-metre-wide street above the shops, with pedestrian walkways, rest areas and sidewalks that separate vehicles from visitors on foot. The same experts said the route could also function as a development axis linking parts of Wadi Musa, redistributing commercial activity and improving access to parking and public facilities.
Parking is covered by a two-level facility with capacity for up to 70 vehicles, along with a new intersection connecting it to the tourist street and the alternative road. The authority said the parking will reduce ad hoc roadside stopping and improve vehicle flow, provided it is paired with directional signage, live information on available spaces and managed entry for buses at peak hours. Work on that management system is under way, according to the authority.
The public square, or plaza, is being extended by 140 metres after about 90 metres were completed in the first phase. Landscaping, green areas and planting beds are included, creating a space the authority says can host social, cultural and tourism events. Service facilities comprise six public restrooms for men and women and two designed for people with disabilities.
Local reaction
Tour guide Mohammed Hilalat said the project will prove itself when visitors move more easily and safely from their accommodation to the visitor centre or the tourist street.
Tourists judge a destination by the clarity of its pathways, the cleanliness of its facilities and the ease of finding information and services, not by the archaeological site alone, Hilalat explained. He singled out walkways and rest areas as important for older visitors, families and anyone who needs more time to move around.
Merchant Ahmad Nawafleh said the local community sees an opportunity to revive the market, but that the outcome depends on how shops are allocated, what rents are charged, which activities are licensed and whether residents are given priority.
Repeating the same products across the units would add no value, Nawafleh argued. A mix of local crafts, restaurants, cafes, digital tourism services, information points and agricultural produce could make the area a destination rather than a gateway.
Community activist Khitam Al-Mashaleh said Wadi Musa needs public spaces that residents feel are theirs as much as visitors'. The plaza will succeed, Al-Mashaleh explained, if it accommodates families, young people and children and runs a regular calendar of activities that extends beyond tourist seasons and official occasions.
She also warned that green areas need a funded plan for maintenance, irrigation and cleaning, and plants suited to Petra's climate and water supply, so that landscaping does not become an operating burden.
Tourism expert Fairouz Al-Hasanat welcomed the accessible restrooms as a sign of intent but said accessibility has to cover the full route, from parking, sidewalks and ramps through the shops and plaza to signage and information. Petra could offer a model for inclusive tourism, Al-Hasanat added, if the needs of older visitors, people with disabilities and families are built into the design from the start.
Suleiman Al-Amrat, a resident, said development in historic cities calls for visual restraint, with new facilities serving the existing setting rather than competing with it. Consistent materials, controlled sign sizes and unified design elements would give the area a coherent character, Al-Amrat explained. He added that native or low-water plants and carefully planned lighting could improve safety at night without producing light pollution.
Abdullah Al-Farajat, a young resident, said the project's value to young people depends on training, funding and fair access to investment opportunities. Residents know the area and can deal with visitors, Al-Farajat noted, but parallel programmes in languages, guiding, digital marketing and food service management would make the difference between a facility that functions and a destination that delivers quality service.
Balancing new build against Petra's character
Al-Sawair acknowledged the difficulty of building in Petra, where any project has to reconcile modern service requirements with the colours, materials and massing of the surroundings. The landscape around the archaeological site, he said, extends the impression visitors form of the city.
Success will not be measured by the length of road built or the number of shops and parking spaces, Al-Sawair said, but by how far those elements strengthen Petra's identity rather than creating a detached commercial zone, which puts weight on architectural detail, signage, lighting, colour and street furniture.
He added that the project may attract new investment, raise the value of surrounding commercial sites, and generate jobs during construction and lasting employment in the shops and services afterwards.
Source: Al-Ghad, reporting by Ahmad Al-Rawashdeh.