UAE | Traffic and Transport
Back-to-school rush and change in work hours bring traffic chaos
The week started on a sour note yesterday as cities ground to a halt during the morning rush hour.
- By Mariam M. Al Serkal and Alia Al Theeb, Staff Reporters
- Published: 00:03 September 8, 2008
- Image Credit: Ahmed Ramzan/Gulf News
- Vehicles crawl along the Emirates Road. Traffic remained at a standstill on many roads linking Dubai and Sharjah on Sunday.
Sharjah/Dubai: The week started on a sour note on Sunday as cities ground to a halt during the morning rush hour.
Motorists were stuck in Sharjah on their daily route to Dubai.
The worst-affected area was Al Ta'awun, that joins up to Al Khan Bridge and Al Ittihad Road.
Commuters blamed school buses for the heavy congestion.
"The rush was caused by many factors. School buses, people leaving later for work and it being the start of the week all added up," said Tarek Khoury, a resident.
Sharjah Police said there were no major accidents yesterday and that the snarls were most likely to have been caused by the change of work and school timings during Ramadan.
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Vehicles on Al Ittihad Road were at a standstill as cars were packed bumper to bumper.
"I had to call the office and let them know that I would be at least an hour late. It ended up taking a little more than two and a half hours to get from Sharjah to Deira," said Obaid Al Ali.
All exit points leading out of Sharjah were packed with hundreds of motorists as they tried to reach their places of work.
Several people pointed out that traffic started as early as 5am, and lasted for many hours longer.
"I woke up to see a long queue of cars outside the window. I refused to get stuck in the early morning rush, so I left two hours later at 9am," said Rolando Lobos.
"But this did not make any difference."
Tailbacks in Mirdiff
Meanwhile, motorists around Mirdiff were caught in endless tailbacks yesterday as many private schools in the area started the academic year.
Early morning hours saw a massive rush and many motorists got stuck in traffic around Mirdiff due to road works as well, which turned some roads into single-lane carriageways.
Suad Mohammad, a government employee, said it took her around two hours to leave Mirdiff where she lives, as the situation was chaotic.
"Irresponsible motorists added to the traffic jams as they tried to cut in front of other cars and changed lanes frequently," she said.
Obaid Salem, a government employee, said because school and work timings are the same during Ramadan it makes the traffic situation even worse.
Accidents: 21 hurt on Dubai roads
Around 21 people were injured in road accidents during the weekend, police said.
Police said most accidents involved buses.
Eight people sustained moderate to minor injuries on Al Ittihad Road when a pick-up collided with a bus.
Eleven people sustained moderate to minor injuries in another collision with a bus and a car on Emirates Road.
Three people sustained serious to moderate injuries when a vehicle turned over in Hatta. In another incident, a pick-up driver sustained injuries when his vehicle overturned in Al Khawaneej. A man sustained serious injuries when he was run over in Al Quoz Industrial Area. Another man sustained injuries when his vehicle turned over on Al Ittihad Road.
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