Back to traffic jam days

RIYADH:  Anticipating heavy traffic on the first day of school after summer vacation, the Riyadh Traffic Department (RTD) deployed 1,200 traffic policemen and 800 vehicles on Saturday from 5.30 in the morning to regulate traffic.
Employees reporting to their office at 9 a.m. were caught in traffic jams that made a 20-minute drive into an hour-long ordeal. Many commuters had to change their normal route to reach their destinations.
Brig. Abdul Aziz bin Hamad Abu Himed, RTD’s director, said the arrangement was part of a comprehensive plan to regulate traffic to ease congestion in Riyadh and prevent any disruption in traffic flow during the movement of students and staff at peak times.
He said the RTD’s plan involved intensive monitoring and surveillance of traffic around schools to prevent any violations that could negatively affect the traffic flow.
It also included the presence of traffic patrol at the domestic and international lounges of King Khalid International Airport around the clock to bar the entry of trucks into the city during peak hours.
The official appealed in a newspaper article to motorists to cooperate with the traffic police and comply with the instructions in the interest of smooth flow of traffic and hassle-free access to their destination.
RTD has allowed involved parties to take photos of their vehicles after an accident and move them from the scene if necessary to give way to other road users. The decision was meant to document any incident while making sure vehicles can be moved from a scene so they don’t pose a threat to public safety or impede traffic.
Earlier the parties involved in traffic accidents had to wait until the traffic police arrived at the scene of the accident. This caused traffic jams on the road.
According to the traffic law, article 63 provides that vehicles can be moved when they pose a threat to traffic safety or obstruct traffic, or if the accident was not serious and the parties have agreed on how it occurred.
It says the parties concerned have to quickly inform the authorities that will handle the matter. Those responsible for an accident should provide possible assistance to the injured, according to traffic law. They should not leave the scene without a valid reason, as they would be considered fugitives and referred to the competent court for action.