New road to RAK's Jebel Jais in the works

Ras Al Khaimah is building a new road to the Jebel Jais mountain, the highest peak in the country, at the Wadi Haqeel area. It will serve as an alternative to the old Wadi Al Beeh road, which was damaged in recent floods, a top official has announced.
Ahmed Al Hammadi, director-general of the General Services Department in Ras Al Khaimah, said expanding this valley route parallel to Jebel Jais would put an end to the usual road damage observed during the rainy season.
The Jebel Jais road is being used by more than 2,000 visitors daily, with vehicles reaching 35,000 during weekends.
A new gate equipped with smart devices has been set up on the road leading to the mountain to monitor traffic and study the volume of vehicles passing by, Al Hammadi said.  
"At the top of the mountain, another gate has been installed in coordination with the tourism authority to monitor the vehicles heading for the recreational adventure platform," he added.
Infrastructure projects on track
Despite the Covid-19 situation, most infrastructure projects in the emirate remained on track, Al Hammadi said in a virtual briefing.
"Some 80 per cent of the department's projects were not affected by the crisis, and only some of these plans were postponed," he said.
A storage pit for rainwater is set to be completed in the Wadi Naqb area by the end of August, Al Hammadi added.  "This is one of the solutions adopted to prevent flooding in the adjacent Naqb and Fahleen areas." 
Being constructed on a total area of 100,000sqm, the 20m-deep collection system can store up to two million cubic metres of rainwater.
When the storage pit is full, the surplus water will pass through special channels to prevent flooding in the nearby residences of Emirati nationals, Al Hammadi explained.  "The Ministry of Infrastructure Development has also started the Naqb Valley Dam project to reduce the impact of floods and put rainwater to good use."
news@khaleejtimes.com
 

• Ras Al Khaimah

A Staff Reporter

Got an interesting story to tell in the UAE? We want to hear all about it. Write to the nation's best reporting team, as we cover the emirates like no one else.

reporters@khaleejtimes.com