RIYADH: Crown Prince Mohammed bin Naif, deputy premier and minister of interior, issued urgent directives on Wednesday to the government departments concerned to make every effort to resolve traffic problems in the country, and to seek out all possible solutions for achieving traffic safety to protect the lives of residents, tourists and citizens.
The crown prince made the announcement while delivering a speech at a meeting of the Traffic Department in Riyadh.
He said the government is keen to ensure the safety of citizens and residents and stressed that proper planning and implementation are important and must be carried out irrespective of the cost involved.
The crown prince said: “The Traffic Department is a very important sector. I know the significance of the work that you are doing, and it is your responsibility to limit the causes of traffic accidents in order to ensure the safety of citizens and residents.”
"All of us are worried about the large number of traffic accidents, which claim the lives of our children every day,” he said.
He stressed the need to deliver a comprehensive traffic awareness message to all citizens and residents across the Kingdom, as well as the need to involve them in everything that will contribute to the development of the traffic department to eliminate the causes of accidents.
In terms of the number of deaths caused by traffic accidents worldwide, the Kingdom ranks first on this list with approximately 21 out of every 100,000 deaths in the country being the result of road accidents.
At a traffic awareness program held under the aegis of the crown prince, Public Security Director Lt. Gen. Othman bin Nasser Al-Mihrij called for public cooperation in reducing traffic accidents. "Eyewitnesses of road accidents can video the incident showing the number plates of the vehicles and can send the video to the Traffic Department,” he said, explaining that many incidents of car drifting and other offenses often go unpunished.
He also said that the media can contribute significantly in carrying out traffic awareness campaigns, highlighting the hazards of road accidents and showing how they can be prevented.
Al-Mihrij called on parents to tell their children to respect the traffic laws of the country and to impress on them the fact that violations can result in fatalities. He told parents that reproaching their children for their faults is part of a strong upbringing.
The Kingdom loses SR50 billion annually due to human injuries as well as damage inflicted upon private and public property as a result of traffic accidents, according to Najah Al-Garawi, dean of Community Partnerships and associate professor of geography at Dammam University.
She said that losses from reckless driving are enormous, including the loss of human lives, bodily injuries, damage to private and public property and the cost of medical care on the state. She pointed out that the number of deaths due to traffic accidents will eventually have a severe impact on the economy of the country due to the loss of valuable human lives.
According to Sultan Al-Zahrani, secretary-general of the Traffic Safety Committee in the Western Province, at least one traffic accident occurs in the Kingdom every minute. There are up to 7,000 deaths and more than 39,000 injuries from traffic accidents in Saudi Arabia every year.
The crown prince made the announcement while delivering a speech at a meeting of the Traffic Department in Riyadh.
He said the government is keen to ensure the safety of citizens and residents and stressed that proper planning and implementation are important and must be carried out irrespective of the cost involved.
The crown prince said: “The Traffic Department is a very important sector. I know the significance of the work that you are doing, and it is your responsibility to limit the causes of traffic accidents in order to ensure the safety of citizens and residents.”
"All of us are worried about the large number of traffic accidents, which claim the lives of our children every day,” he said.
He stressed the need to deliver a comprehensive traffic awareness message to all citizens and residents across the Kingdom, as well as the need to involve them in everything that will contribute to the development of the traffic department to eliminate the causes of accidents.
In terms of the number of deaths caused by traffic accidents worldwide, the Kingdom ranks first on this list with approximately 21 out of every 100,000 deaths in the country being the result of road accidents.
At a traffic awareness program held under the aegis of the crown prince, Public Security Director Lt. Gen. Othman bin Nasser Al-Mihrij called for public cooperation in reducing traffic accidents. "Eyewitnesses of road accidents can video the incident showing the number plates of the vehicles and can send the video to the Traffic Department,” he said, explaining that many incidents of car drifting and other offenses often go unpunished.
He also said that the media can contribute significantly in carrying out traffic awareness campaigns, highlighting the hazards of road accidents and showing how they can be prevented.
Al-Mihrij called on parents to tell their children to respect the traffic laws of the country and to impress on them the fact that violations can result in fatalities. He told parents that reproaching their children for their faults is part of a strong upbringing.
The Kingdom loses SR50 billion annually due to human injuries as well as damage inflicted upon private and public property as a result of traffic accidents, according to Najah Al-Garawi, dean of Community Partnerships and associate professor of geography at Dammam University.
She said that losses from reckless driving are enormous, including the loss of human lives, bodily injuries, damage to private and public property and the cost of medical care on the state. She pointed out that the number of deaths due to traffic accidents will eventually have a severe impact on the economy of the country due to the loss of valuable human lives.
According to Sultan Al-Zahrani, secretary-general of the Traffic Safety Committee in the Western Province, at least one traffic accident occurs in the Kingdom every minute. There are up to 7,000 deaths and more than 39,000 injuries from traffic accidents in Saudi Arabia every year.
