ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraq’s transport ministry announced that it will begin operating water taxis on the Tigris River to alleviate traffic deadlock in the capital city of Baghdad, state media reported on Thursday.
“In accordance with the government's directives to reduce traffic congestion and alleviate congestion in Baghdad Governorate, the General Company for Maritime Transport, in coordination with the prime minister's office, activated river transport as one of the mass transit modes,” said Maitham al-Safi, communications director at the transport ministry, state media INA reported.
Several locations on the banks of the Tigris were identified as stations in coordination with the ministry of water resources and designs were prepared by specialized engineers.
"The Ministry of Transport is awaiting approval of these designs to activate the river transport process from north to south of Baghdad and vice versa, using modern boats and trained marine crews," Safi said.
Traffic in Baghdad has reached crippling levels with the number of cars in the Iraqi capital far exceeding the capacity of its roads.
In November, state media al-Sabah reported that according to the country’s general directorate of traffic, the number of cars in Iraq, excluding the Kurdistan Region, has hit 7 million, 4 million of which are in Baghdad, some 3.75 million over capacity.
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