Deaths caused by traffic accidents in Abu Dhabi down 19% in H1 2017

The General Command of the Abu Dhabi Police has seen positive results and increasing traffic safety in the emirate during the first part of 2017, compared to the same period in 2016.

The overall rate of serious accidents decreased by 8 percent, and the rate of deaths resulting from serious accidents also decreased by 19 percent.

The rate of fatal accidents decreased by 3 percent and the number of traffic violations decreased by 29 percent, despite a 13 percent increase in the number of vehicles registered and an increase in new license holders of 6 percent.

Colonel Ahmed Al Shehhi, Deputy Director of the Traffic and Patrols Department at the Abu Dhabi Police, said that the improvement in the levels of traffic safety in the emirate is due to the implementation of a comprehensive traffic safety plan, which improved the monitoring of roads and reduced the causes of traffic accidents that lead to deaths and injuries, while raising the awareness of drivers in both public and private sectors.

Al Shehhi added that the main causes of major accidents in the first part of 2017 were neglect and a lack of attention, followed by sudden lane shifts, a lack of sufficient distance between vehicles, excessive speeding, careless driving onto main roads, jumping red signals and tyre explosions.

He noted that those mostly involved in road accidents were people in the age group between 18 and 30, as they were responsible for 44 percent of total accidents. He stressed the importance of community dialogue and communication with young drivers.

Concerning the nationalities of errant drivers, he said Asians accounted for 38 percent of all traffic accidents, followed by UAE citizens, Arab countries' citizens, and then the Gulf Cooperation Council citizens.

He emphasised that the Abu Dhabi Police awareness plan targeted different nationalities living in the UAE. The plan entails holding lectures for Asian workers about mistakes made by drivers and the causes of road accidents.

He also revealed that speed limit violations accounted for 76 percent of the total violations in Abu Dhabi during the first half of the current year, and urged drivers to adhere to the posted speed limits.

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