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Material carriers jeopardising cars parked in Sharjah

At present, Sharjah is a booming emirate where construction activity is taking place in the narrow streets at a rapidly increasing pace.

"Trucks and trailers are forcing their way into the narrow streets to deliver goods, and in the process, damaging several cars parked on the roadside," said Mustafa Amin, whose car was damaged by a truck trying to enter a construction site.

"My car was parked properly in the designated place in the parking lot, but a huge trailer carrying huge blocks of cemented blocks which was trying to enter a construction site rammed into the rear of my car in such a manner that it was a complete write off," said a peeved Amin.

"The driver was fined by the police and my car was taken care of by the insurance company, but such incidents are becoming quite common, causing huge losses," he said.

Construction companies defend such acts stating that a 'No Parking' sign was clearly marked on the side of the fence and workers were also standing guard to warn drivers not to park their cars near the area.

"Despite the fact that construction companies ask people not to park their vehicles near construction sites, car owners keep doing so, and if their cars are damaged, they put the blame on us," said Hassan Sabzali, a representative of a construction company.

Sabzali said there was always the danger of falling debris which can damage any vehicle parked near the site, and hence, companies normally appoint people to stand guard and warn motorists not to park besides warning pedestrians.

Car owners also complained about the parking space taken up illegally by these companies.

"Construction companies should also give us explanations as to why they take up precious parking space," said Fareed Siddique. "Because these companies have taken up huge space to keep the building material, there is little space left for parking of cars, so motorists have no option but to park near these sites," he argued.

He said the streets of Sharjah were too narrow for huge trucks, and suggested that a special area be designated to offload construction material which could later be moved to the construction site in smaller vehicles.

Several other car owners complained that building paint and cement also damaged cars.

"I have layers of cement and multi-coloured paint on my car, which I have not been able to remove. My mechanic tells me that it will cost me Dh1,500 to have it removed," says Saleem Misbah.

"All this damage is due to the construction company flouting rules and not putting a screen when they were spraying paint," he said.

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