DUBAI, 22 July 2007 — According to recent statistics issued by the Sharjah Police’s Traffic and Licensing Department, there has been a sharp increase in the number of pedestrians killed on Sharjah’s roads during the first four months of this year.
Statistics have shown that 30 pedestrians have died during the first four months of this year, a substantial increase to the 20 deaths recorded during the same period in 2006. The injury toll of pedestrians also went up to 128 during the same period. Last year, 320 injuries and 57 deaths were recorded during the entire year.
Most of the fatal accidents occurred on highways, in industrial areas and some busy commercial areas. The absence of pedestrian bridges has been blamed for the rising number of deaths.
The largest number of accidents with pedestrian injuries took place on the inner city roads of Al-Wahda, Al-Rolla and Al-Butaina. Even though some of these roads have proper zebra crossings, speeding cars regularly bump into pedestrians. The majority of people killed or injured tend to be Asians followed by Arabs.
According to Brig. Rashid Ghareeb, director of Sharjah Traffic Police, some roads do not have enough facilities to help pedestrians cross safely. He added that the police are working hard to rectify the problem and that they have sent proposals to different government departments to ensure roads are made safe for all.
