RTA identifies 50 accident areas in Dubai

The Road and Transport Authority (RTA) spoke with optimism about traffic safety in Dubai. During the ongoing Gulf Traffic Week, it presented its achievements towards creating safety on the roads.

"We at the RTA feel optimistic about the future in creating traffic awareness in this emirate, and the source of this optimism lies in the efforts which we have persistently made with regards to safety and traffic awareness. This has yielded great results in a number of substantial aspects," said Maitha bin Udai, CEO of Traffic and Roads Agency, RTA.

When it comes to the road network in the emirate, the RTA is not only involved in design and construction of these roads, but also looks at ways to improve the safety and quality on these roads through several studies, Maitha pointed out.

RTA has established the so-called black point areas; the areas which witness frequent traffic accidents.

"In 2012, more than 50 black point areas points have been studied and we have dealt with those roads that frequently witness accidents," explained Maitha.

The proactive approach has contributed to the reduction of traffic incidents, she explained.

"The number of violations made by exceeding the speed limit has decreased by 86 per cent, the number of runover accidents by 37 per cent and the number of violations made by jumping a red light by 36 per cent."

Over the past seven years, the number of deaths on the road has been brought with 61 per cent, comparing the numbers from 2006 with the numbers of 2012.  While the number of people who died in traffic accidents reached 312 in 2006, this toll was 123 in 2012.

Furthermore, the death rate per 100,000 residents in Dubai was 37.8 in 2012, while it was 21.9 in 2006.

RTA also focuses its efforts to create traffic awareness.

"In our efforts to create awareness we target the youth and mothers," said Hussein Mohammad Al Banna, Director of the Traffic Department, RTA.

"It is important to reach out to children at a young age, because these are the future drivers. We visit schools and we educate children on the importance of road safety. When these children are old enough to drive, they will have the right mindset."

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