Repair reports only after dues cleared

The orders issued by Brigadier Dr Jamal M. Al Merri, Deputy Chief of Dubai Police, said that the cars seized by the police for various reasons would not be handed back to the owners unless all traffic violations committed by the car in question were settled.+

Brig. Al Merri was speaking recently at the traffic department where he met with senior officials to discuss traffic strategies.

He said the orders were given to force car owners failing to pay accumulated fines to pay the fines. He said police stations in the emirate have been ordered by the headquarters to collect the amounts at any time during the day or night, in order to facilitate the issuing of vehicle repair reports.

The police official said many motorists were unaware of the seriousness of the offences committed by them, and awareness campaigns should be intensified to inculcate the principles of safety in the minds of the motoring public.

He was briefed on the strategy of the traffic department to reduce fatalities in accidents by some 30 per cent till the year 2009.

Statistics showed that fatalities in road accidents on the Shaikh Zayed Road were less in January 2005 (13 death cases) compared to January 2004 which witnessed 20 deaths. He said the plan to increase field assignments for police to cover 80 per cent of the workforce was a formidable task but one that will yield the desirable results.