(MENAFN - Khaleej Times) The road fatality rate in Dubai has come down to three per cent during January this year, compared to six per cent in the first month of last year.
While most of the people killed in accidents were UAE nationals, Indians and Sri Lankans were in the second and third places respectively, the General Department of Traffic has revealed.
Major-General Mohammed Saif Al Zafin, Director of the department, said that the death indicators is going down as per the strategy announced by Lieutenant General Dhahi Khalfan Tamim, Commander-in-Chief of the Dubai Police, to reduce death rate to less than one per cent within ten years, which means that death rate should decrease by 13 deaths every year.
He said that in the future, the police will focus on removing causes of accidents. Drivers will be educated about the need to reduce speed when they come near traffic signals, he said, adding that the biggest challenge this year is to reduce pedestrian deaths. Awareness campaigns are targeting pedestrians who cross roads in non-designated areas as 41 pedestrians were killed in traffic accidents last year.
He said that the police will issue fine on pedestrians who cross road in non-designated areas. He explained that pedestrians are banned from crossing roads where speed limit is over 80km per hour and on internal roads, pedestrians should cross roads through the zebra line or pedestrian bridges. He said that in January, 219 accidents were recorded, resulting in six deaths and 177 injuries.
Most of the injured (44) were Indians, followed by UAE nationals (31). No child was killed in accidents last month while 13 of the injured were in the age group of 1-15. Al Zafin said that the traffic department recorded 205,252 traffic violations in this January, compared to 212,307 last year and the over speed violations have reached 143,000.
He said 2,049 violations were recorded for jumping red signal last month while it was 1,668 in January last year.
