Women drivers in Dubai beware!

Applying makeup while driving can now get you pulled over and fined.

If texting, speaking on mobiles phones and reading newspapers while driving is dangerous, so is applying make-up, said a top traffic official.

Major-General Mohammed Saif Al Zaffin, Director of Dubai Traffic, said, distracted driving such as applying makeup will incur a fine of Dh200 and four black points.

However, women are free to do the same while the car is parked, he added.

He was speaking at a press conference to launch an awareness campaign on the dangers of drinking and driving.

The hazards of distracted driving are manifold, he said and added women who apply makeup while at the wheels will not be able to concentrate and react to emergencies, he added.  

Al Zaffin said he issued fines to four women in Dubai for reckless driving that endangered others’ lives.

About 15 per cent of total licence holders in Dubai are women.

Meanwhile, women committed 83 traffic accidents, which is 8.6 per cent of total road mishaps.

They were responsible for eight deaths and 147 injuries.