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11 Sivan 5759 - May 26, 1999 | Mordecai Plaut, director Published Weekly
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News
New Traffic Procedures in Jerusalem Chareidi Centers

by S. Fried

As a result of long deliberations held by the Jerusalem branch of Degel HaTorah and the UTJ faction of the Jerusalem Municipality with the city's traffic officials, it has been decided to revamp the traffic arrangements of the chareidi centers of Geula, Meah Shearim and their environs.

In this veteran center, traffic simply comes to a standstill a number of times a day, especially on arvei yom tov. Illegally parked cars totally block the ongoing flow. Private cars, maneuvering with nearly acrobatic skill, only add to the confusion.

Finding a solution seems impossible because of the tremendous congestion and limited space. However, the Municipal Committee for the Allocation of Planning Assignments, headed by Rabbi Uri Maklev, decided to solicit new proposals to alleviate the problem. A million shekel proposal by the office of Avraham Gialchinsko has been accepted.

One of the most difficult problems is the shortage of parking spaces. There is no orderly parking on the streets of these neighborhoods. Merchants claim that parking fees would deter customers from shopping in those areas. In addition, area residents demand that a parking zone be designated for their personal needs. Store owners who leave their cars parked in this congested area all day deprive potential customers of precious parking space. A suggestion was made to grant store owners free parking tickets for a limited number of hours a day.

All of these suggestions, to benefit the chareidim who are the main frequenters of the commercial areas of Geula and Meah Shearim, will be seriously considered.

The opening of the new Rav Shefa shopping mall on Shamgar Street did not lessen the congestion in Geula. Instead, it brought about further congestion in the area of the Shamgar funeral home.

Residents of the chareidi center of the city also complain that on Beis Yisroel Street, near the Mirrer yeshiva, traffic is chaotic. Drivers park cars there without any consideration for the traffic which is supposed to flow through this narrow street. This problem is especially serious since both sides of the street are lined with carpenters and other workshops, and large trucks load and unload merchandise there all day long. Since the street is two-way, traffic is constantly blocked. The number 10 bus, which tries to inch through oncoming traffic, must frequently stop for long periods, frustrating the drivers and the passengers. For some reason, no municipal inspector or traffic policeman may be found in the area: perhaps the reasoning being that since there is no orderly parking zone there, they can't give fines.

Frequenters of the area asked the Degel HaTorah faction to consider this problem while planning the new traffic procedures of the chareidi centers of the city.


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