DUBAI, 15 October 2006 — Every hour, 157 cars collide or are caught violating traffic laws on the streets of Dubai, a marked increase from years past, according to city statistics.
Despite the intensive efforts of the traffic police to ensure road safety, the number of car accidents has increased to worrying levels as a result of carelessness and undisciplined driving attitudes.
Traffic records indicate a sharp increase in traffic violations in Dubai, almost doubling from 520,000 in 2003 to 1.17 million in 2005. The first eight months of 2006 saw 908,000 violations, or 3,784 violations per day. The most common road violations range from hindering traffic flow, dangerous overtaking, jumping red lights and transporting too many passengers and the use of handicapped parking without a permit.
Traffic violations as usual shot up during Ramadan. In the first half of Ramadan, the radar section of the traffic department caught 30,660 speeding motorists, racking up six million dirhams in fines.
The first half of Ramadan has also seen 1,581 tickets issued to motorists for running red lights, amounting to 7.9 million dirhams in penalties. (Drivers caught running red lights have their cars impounded for a week.)
“Most of the motorists want to reach at home before iftar (Ramadan fast-breaking) and this impatience causes accidents,” said a senior traffic officer at fines section at Traffic Department in Dubai. The traffic police also fined 1,239 motorists in the first half of Ramadan for illegally passing other cars.
Meanwhile, Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, chairman of Dubai Executive Council, instructed the traffic police to double their efforts to reduce traffic congestion and ensure smoother traffic flows at peak hours.
“Impose strict penalties for those who break the law,” he ordered. “Traffic violations are a key cause behind the rising number of road accidents and deaths.”
“During the past few years, the economic boom in the UAE has resulted in higher personal incomes, subsequently increasing the number of cars on the roads. Yet, this cannot be a valid excuse for the mounting number of fatal road accidents. Intensive police patrol and stricter penalties will help combat this phenomenon,” he said.
