Better traffic? It's because trucks are rarely on the road within city limits, reports Rehab Sayed Ahmed Two weeks ago, the Governor of Cairo Abdel-Azim Wazir issued a decree strictly regulating the movement of large trucks in the capital to improve the flow of traffic. The order, issued on 31 March, prohibits trucks carrying cargoes of more than two tonnes from travelling most Cairo streets between the hours of 7am and 8pm. Trucks are also banned to travel on most bridges between 7am till 12am and districts like Heliopolis, Maadi, Zamalek, Garden City and Downtown between 7am and 8pm. Also trucks are barred to use underpasses at any time. Wazir explained that Cairo streets are designed to accommodate the movement of 500,000 cars, but in reality are trampled on by two million cars. Although the governor said the decision was taken after extensive studies on the best means to end traffic jams, his edict was nonetheless subject to heated debate. Mustafa Sabri, professor of transportation planning and traffic engineering at Ain Shams University, hailed the decree because trucks occupy the space of four cars on the road. Moreover, most of these invasive vehicles are in bad condition, pollute the air heavily or break down. Sabri added that serious accidents and traffic jams occur due to the sluggish speed of trucks, and hoped that other crowded governorates will follow suit. Sayed Mokhtar, regional sales manager for a large dairy food company, said that his firm was taken by surprise since they were not informed about it ahead of time. The staff was astonished when the delivery trucks returned to headquarters fully loaded on 1 April. Sales dropped by 40 per cent during the first four days of April, but he expects them to rise again once his company and consumers adjust to the new situation. For his part, Wazir said that Major General Serag Zaghloul, head of Cairo's traffic department, had discussed the new decree in the press two weeks ahead of its implementation. Moreover, traffic police handed out flyers to truck drivers during the last week of March informing them about alternate routes. Road signs were also installed for further awareness. While Mokhtar doubted that banning trucks is an effective solution to Cairo's traffic congestion, Wazir defended the decree by saying that it is in the best interest of the public. He pointed out that the ban was positively received by 18 million Cairenes who feel the difference during their commute. Tamer Mosalam, Cairo sales director at a prominent drinks company, supported the decree since it will improve the capital's gridlocks, but said that officials at the governorate should have consulted with companies before the decree was finalised. While his company will comply with the decision, he would like more flexibility in its implementation since his company's profits have already dropped by about 20 per cent as a result. Mosalam explained that previously restocking outlets took place during the daytime and lasted for approximately 10 hours, but now they only have five hours at night when the vast majority of stores and establishments they deal with are closed. He suggested that two trucks from each company should be allowed to travel during the day. Already, several business groups held a meeting with the head of the Chambers of Commerce in Cairo Ali Moussa in order to resolve the problems which have risen.
