Dubai: There were more than 14,200 cases of running the red light recorded by Dubai Traffic Police in the first eight months of 2016, almost a 9.4 per cent decrease from the same period last year.
Brigadier Saif Muhair Al Mazroui, Director of Dubai Traffic Police, said 498 of the 14,236 fines were given in the presence of the motorist concerned, while the other 13,738 were in absentia.
“This is a decrease from the same period last year, where we recorded a total of 15,717 cases of running a red light,” he said.
Brig Al Mazroui said, running a red light is one of the most dangerous traffic violations, as statistics show that accidents that happen as a result of running a red light usually have severe results, such as serious injuries or death.
Running the red light had resulted in 87 accidents in the same period, which resulted in one death and 94 injuries. In the same period of 2015, the same violation resulted in 100 accidents, three deaths and 145 injuries.
“There is also an increased risk of the loss of human life and property damage in such accidents, as there is a high probability of crashing into a vehicle moving in the other direction,” he said.
Adding that the intensity of the crash is very high due to the angles at which the vehicles crash into each other.
“The crashes either happen head-on or they crash perpendicular to each other, which increases the severity of the injuries and raises the possibility of fatalities. Also, cars running a red light are usually speeding, which also factors into the severity of the crash,” he said.
Many motorists speed right before a traffic signal to try to pass the yellow light before it turns red, which is a very dangerous practice, he said, “If he misses the yellow light and it turns red, it significantly increases his chance of an accident.”
In the last eight months, March saw the highest number of people running the red light, with 2,107 instances, followed by January with 2,030 and August with 1,887.
June saw the least red light violations, with 1,355 fines.
