NNA - In a statement delivered through X platform on Monday, Caretaker Minister of Public Works and Transportation, Ali Hamieh, implored attention to a pressing matter before the approval of the 2024 state budget in Parliament. He emphasized that since 2019, no maintenance had been conducted on highways and roads classified under the ministry. This included the crucial Dahr El-Baydar road.

“The financial constraints, well-known since then, led the Cabinet to commission the Ministry of Public Works with a consultancy study in 2019. The study indicated a required sum of $20 million for the rehabilitation of the Beirut-Dahr El-Baydar road. However, this has not been implemented, and the financial deficit remains a significant hindrance,” Hamieh explained. 

“The allocated $60 million for road maintenance in the 2024 budget, yet to be approved, only represents 20% of the required amount for adequate maintenance,” Minister Hamieh added, underscoring that the intervention and remediation efforts on this international road cannot be a definitive solution. “Fundamental changes are impossible without sufficient funds, considering the acute climate change, chronic lack of road maintenance, and the inability to address issues comprehensively and promptly,” Hamieh added, warning of consecutive collapses in various regions and emphasizing the increasing risks for everyone involved. 

Then Hamieh pleaded for the acknowledgment that road maintenance was as vital as healthcare, electricity, and other citizen necessities. 

========R.H.