The UAE is toughening the penalties for the breach of road rules in a country that is seeking to lower the soaring statistics of car accidents and fatalities on the road.Here is an example of the new (21 September 2008) tough penalties that will be applied to you for the running of a red light.
R-Your car will be impounded for 15 days.
R-You will be fined 800 dirhams (US$218).
R-You will receive 8 black (demerit) points—get 24 points and it is goodbye to your license for a while.
The Traffic and Patrol department in Abu Dhabi impounded a total of 1,943 vehicles for running red signals during the last six months, official news agency WAM reported on Sunday 21 September 2008.
Related Articles
The Road: The Most Dangerous Place in the Emirates, ETE.
UAE: The Tailgating Capital of the World, ETE.
UAE Pedestrian Crossings: The Most Dangerous Place to Be, ETE.
Reducing Traffic Accidents on UAE Roads, ETE.
Hefty Fines, Penalties for Traffic Violations Planned, KT, 21 March 2006. An article outlining fines in 2006 when a system of demerit points was introduced. [This may well be out of date but information is hard to come by].
What Do You Think?
Do you think these new 'jumping the red light' penalties are too tough or do you think that with the deaths that are caused and the drivers that continue to flout the laws that the punishment is not tough enough?
Dr Geoff Pound
Image: The remains of a car that was hit by a truck running a red light.
