Amman, Oct. 31 (Petra)-- The amended Traffic Service Fees Regulation was published in the Official Gazette on Thursday, marking a significant step toward implementing toll-based roads in Jordan.

The updated regulation includes an annex for the Al-Harraneh–Omari Road, which will become the first toll road in the Kingdom under the new "alternative roads" model.

According to the regulation, the toll for the section between Qasr Amra and Qasr Al-Harraneh toward the Saudi border is set at 85 piasters for small vehicles, including light and medium freight vehicles and passenger buses of all sizes, and 2.5 dinars for heavy trucks with four or more axles.

Government, military, and ambulance vehicles, as well as official delegations of all types, are exempt from toll payments.

The regulation authorizes the government to collect toll fees through cash payments, electronic means, or other approved payment methods.

The Al-Harraneh–Omari Road serves as a pilot project for the long-discussed Alternative Roads Initiative, which has been under consideration since 2007 and was later incorporated into the Economic Modernization Vision’s Executive Program.

The Ministry of Public Works emphasized that tolls will not be applied to any existing public roads currently used by citizens. Instead, the initiative will target newly constructed routes or unfinished segments of ring roads that require substantial funding. These projects will be offered as investment opportunities in partnership with the private sector.

The ministry reaffirmed that no toll road will be introduced without a free alternative route available to motorists. It also underscored its continued commitment to maintaining and rehabilitating the national road network, noting that revenues from the toll system will provide a new source of funding to support road maintenance and development across the Kingdom.

//Petra// MF