AMMAN — Residents and business owners across the capital have voiced mixed reactions as the Greater Amman Municipality (GAM) intensifies enforcement of regulations prohibiting valet companies from using public streets as parking areas.

 

In a statement to The Jordan Times, the GAM reiterated that public roads will not be converted into private parking zones, stressing that valet operators must secure legally licensed plots designated specifically for parking.

 

GAM’s Director of Areas and Environment Affairs Mohammad Faouri said that the campaign is part of a broader plan to regulate the sector and ease pressure on Amman’s already strained traffic system.

 

He noted that the measures aim to improve service standards, prevent misuse of public space and support a more orderly urban environment.

 

As part of the enforcement effort, municipal teams have removed more than 1,000 concrete barriers and over 10,000 cones and makeshift obstacles that had been placed illegally by operators attempting to reserve street parking.

 

The move has sparked varied responses from residents, many of whom say valet operators have effectively taken over entire streets, making everyday parking increasingly difficult.

 

Several citizens told The Jordan Times that they spend considerable time searching for parking, only to find access blocked by cones, plastic chairs or individuals working informally for valet companies.

 

“All streets near commercial centres and busy areas are occupied by valet employees who do not even have permission to operate,” said Sereen Yousef, a Jordanian in her 20s.

 

Some valet workers, however, say the sudden enforcement has disrupted their livelihoods.

 

Osama Said, a worker in downtown Amman, said that many smaller, unregistered valet services depend on street access because they cannot afford licensed private parking lots.

 

Regulation is necessary, he said, warning that the new requirements may push several operators out of the market and leave daily-wage workers without stable income.

 

Many residents maintain that stricter oversight is long overdue, arguing that valet companies must operate within the law and avoid encroaching on public space.

 

GAM said that the campaign forms part of an ongoing effort to create a fair and effective parking system across the city.