UAE road accidents kill two every day

Road accidents have killed 5,514 people in the UAE over the past six years, an average of more than two every day, with Abu Dhabi emerging as the main victim.

Police records showed the deaths during 2006-2011 were a result of nearly 51,200 accidents, which also injured 63,406 people.

The statistics by the Fujeirah traffic police, carried by the semi official daily Alittihad, showed 2008 was the bloodiest year on roads as traffic mishaps killed 1,071.

Abu Dhabi emerged as the main victim, with road accidents killing 2,124, accounting for nearly 38 per cent of the total road death casualties during six years.

The report showed 1,449 people were on roads in Dubai, 922 in Sharjah, 421 in Ras Al Khaimah, 236 in Fujeirah, 201 in Ajman and 161 in Umm Al Quwain.

The casualties through the UAE stood at 879 in 2006 before surging to 1,056 in 2007 and peaking at 1,071 in 2008. The number declined to 963 in 2009, to 836 in 2010 and 720 in 2011, the lowest death casualty figure during that period.

Police said the decline last year was a result of a fall in the number of accidents as they stood at 6,700, the lowest number of mishaps over the past six years.

They attributed the fall to intensified police patrols on roads, the deployment of more speed cameras, awareness campaigns and more stringent penalties, including the introduction of black points that could temporarily deprive drivers from their licence.

The report showed a staggering 21 million penalties were issued by the traffic police against offending drivers during 2006-2011, an average 9,500 penalties a day.

It gave no details of the offences but a previous police report showed speed accounts for nearly two thirds of the traffic violations committed by drivers every year. Other key offences include jumping the red signal, reckless driving, negligence, failure to leave enough distance between vehicles and sudden change of lanes.

The UAE, the second largest Arab economy and one of the wealthiest nations, has one of the world’s highest traffic accident rates relative to its population.

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