Despite the statements made by security officials and the spokesman of the traffic police in Madinah Col. Omar Al-Nazawi to determine the times in which gas trucks are allowed to operate in the city, residents are still complaining about the loud noise and chaos these vehicles cause during their afternoon siesta. In the past, cooking gas trucks that roam around residential neighborhoods to replace empty cylinders in homes used to alert residents of their arrival by tapping with a screwdriver on gas tanks. Residents now complain that they are using bells and alarms with very loud noises that are becoming extremely annoying and disturbing. Residents at neighborhoods where gas trucks drive between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. everyday are calling for interventions to end this chaotic phenomenon. Many of the people who run this service are illegal migrants who can't be held accountable for this dangerous way of transporting gas cylinders under the hot sun. Abu Tawfiq said sometimes he feels as though these gas sellers are targeting his street on purpose just to disturb his sleep and resting times. "I hear them passing by all the time and they are so loud. The municipality must set a specific time and location for them. They can't be left to roam all day long disturbing people," said Abu Tawfiq. Mohammed Fahad wondered how were they allowed to carry gas tanks in high temperatures and extreme whether conditions. "Wouldn't that affect the tanks? Isn't this dangerous for them and others around them? How could the Civil Defense allow for such operations to take place?" he asked. The National Gas & Industrial Co. (Gasco) has the monopoly over the distribution of cooking gas in the Kingdom since 1975. In the 1970s, many companies and small firms had concession to distribute cooking gas to household. However, severe competition led to serious problems and the government had to intervene. As a result Gasco was incorporated with the merger of smaller companies, including the Dammam-based National Gas Company and the Riyadh-based Saudi Manufacturing and Gas Company.
