Road fatalities slow down in Abu Dhabi

Deaths in traffic accidents in Abu Dhabi dropped by 34 per cent in the first five months of the year compared with the same period last year.

The statistics released by the Traffic and Patrols Directorate at the Abu Dhabi Police showed that the number of fatalities in traffic accidents, in general, decreased from 166 in the same period last year to 109. Deaths among UAE citizens as a result of traffic accidents dropped from 40 to 35 (12.5 per cent) and the number of pedestrians who died after being knocked down by vehicles fell from 36 to 29 (19.4 per cent).

Colonel Khamees Ishaq Mohammed, Director of the Traffic and Patrols Directorate, said the decline in the number of fatalities in traffic accidents followed the implementation of a full-fledged strategy of traffic safety in collaboration with the strategic partners in the areas of road engineering, traffic bottlenecks and spreading awareness and education. The other areas of cooperation also entail quick response, healthcare, continual evaluation for the outcome and the indicators of performance.

A comprehensive plan has been implemented in view of the rise in the number of offending vehicles being held up, he said. Accordingly, more mobile radars and traffic police both in uniform and civilian clothes have been deployed on roads round the clock. The step has been taken to enforce the law by penalizing the motorists who do not adhere to the traffic law by impounding their vehicles and suspending their driving licences.

The strict actions, according to him, are designed to curb violations, which result in traffic accidents. These also contributed to reducing the number of road crashes.

More traffic awareness programmes are being rolled out including lectures, distribution of leaflets containing awareness instructions and sending awareness messages through media that target all segments of the society, he said. The police also keep in touch with the public through the traffic programme called ‘Together’ on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. The police also honour law-abiding motorists with certificates of appreciation to encourage others also to be like them. Colonel Ishaq Mohammed called on motorists to reduce speed while approaching traffic signals and avoid stopping inside the yellow box at road junctions and give priority to pedestrians.

He also advised parents not to let their children drive without a driving licence, and raise their awareness on the risks of speeding and driving recklessly.

Forty-three per cent of the accidents happened due to negligence and not paying attention, while sudden swerving of vehicles caused 19 per cent of the accidents, tyre bursts five per cent and failure to keep sufficient space between the vehicles four per cent, he added.

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