GAM to benefit from Russia’s smart city experience — mayor

AMMAN — Amman Mayor Yousef Shawarbeh on Thursday met with delegates representing Russian companies, headed by Deputy International Affairs Minister of Moscow City government Shutenko Oleg. 

During the meeting, Shawarbeh expressed the strong Jordanian-Russian bilateral relations, noting that GAM looks to further cooperation with Moscow's municipality and local administrations in the fields of city services, especially public transport, IT and investment, according to a Greater Amman Municipality (GAM) statement sent to The Jordan Times.

The mayor voiced GAM's interest to renew an agreement signed between Amman and Moscow municipalities to create a joint work plan to exchange expertise and to benefit from the Russian experience in the field of smart cities. 

For his part, the head of the delegation said the challenges Amman and Moscow face are similar, according to the statement, which stated that some delegates represent companies that seek to establish investments in cooperation with their Jordanian business counterparts. 

The meeting was attended by Amman Deputy Mayor Mekhled Al Manaseer and City Director Ahmad Malkawi, and also included a presentation on the Moscow municipality’s development and services to address traffic jams, one of the most persistent challenges that the municipality resolved through a modern transportation system, according to the statement. 

Shutenko Oleg said that Moscow's population stands at 12 million, and it has five million vehicles, four international airports and around seven million people who regularly use the metro, noting that new metro stations are being opened on a monthly basis.

Shawarbeh noted that the most significant challenge in Amman is the traffic caused by the lack of a strong transportation system. As part of its plan to address traffic challenges, GAM has started operating 135 buses that support e-payment and are accessible for people with disabilities, the mayor said.