Shafaq News- Baghdad

Registered vehicles in Iraq have exceeded 12 million, with nearly one-third concentrated in the capital, Baghdad, according to the General Traffic Directorate, placing sustained pressure on road infrastructure that has struggled to keep pace with rapid growth.

Planning Ministry spokesperson Abd Al-Zahra Al-Hindawi estimated the active fleet at nearly 8 million vehicles, noting that continued imports, population growth, and multi-car households are driving annual increases. Iraq’s population exceeds 44 million, underscoring the scale of private vehicle dependence in a country with limited mass transit options.

The Iraq Future Foundation has projected that the number of active vehicles could surpass 9 million by 2030 if current trends continue.

Al-Hindawi said policy responses should combine road expansion with stronger public transport to reduce reliance on private cars. He pointed to the development of Baghdad’s ring roads —extending roughly 100 kilometers— as critical to easing pressure within the capital and linking new residential districts to main transport corridors.

To ease bottlenecks, the Construction and Housing Ministry has completed 16 congestion-relief projects under a first package and four under a second, spokesperson Istabraq Sabah said. Remaining works include bridge connections, overpasses, and phased rehabilitation of major expressways such as Dora and Mohammed Al-Qasim, alongside large-scale projects including the Grand Baghdad Bridge.

Officials say further reductions in traffic pressure will require integrated planning, expanded public transport networks, smart traffic management systems, and closer coordination among ministries to align urban expansion with infrastructure capacity.

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