Dubai: Gulf News readers expressed surprise after reading about a proposal for a reduction in the legal driving age from 18 to 16.
Major General Mohammad Saif Al Zafein, Director of Dubai Police's Traffic Department, suggested the change after a study that concluded the roads would be safer with the presence of younger drivers.
Comments poured in to gulfnews.com as readers debated on the proposal. Most were against the idea of allowing the younger generation to obtain a licence at a young age.
Fatima Al Hashemi, a 25-year-old Emirati, was one of them.
She said: "We would definitely do better without teenagers' hormones behind the wheels. As it is, we cannot stand any more cars on the road. The issue should be thoroughly considered."
Inclined to speed
Dania Abu Zahr, a 33-year-old Lebanese expatriate, holds similar views.
She said: "I don't think reducing the legal driving age is a good idea. From my experience, young drivers are more inclined to speed than older people, as they are very energetic."
Dania is convinced that the younger generation should be educated about road safety and driving ethics in schools instead of allowing them on the roads. "It would have been better to increase the age to 21," she said.
Habiba Baqer Mohammad, a 26-year-old Emirati, is worried that decreasing the age limit might lead to more accidents on the roads.
She said: "The youth may be better drivers, but I think they would have a higher accident ratio compared to experienced drivers. Many youngsters look at the road as a race track and reducing the age limit would mean more loss of innocent lives and an increase in traffic congestion."
Several readers are optimistic about the proposal. They believe that learning safety rules at an early age would be beneficial to all motorists.
Syed Faiz Jalal, a 41-year-old Pakistani expatriate, suggests supervised driving for young motorists.
He said: "A condition could be imposed — until the age of 19, only supervised driving should be allowed so that safe driving habits are instilled into the new driver."
Probation period
Darren Male, a British expatriate, agrees.
He said: "Reducing the driving age could work if the right controls were implemented, such as a probation period, maximum engine size for cars and enforcement of existing laws. Education in road safety should start at a very young age and be drummed home throughout the schooling years."
Ahmad Omar, a 20-year-old Emirati, admits that he was tempted to drive his parents' car before he got his licence.
He said: "When I was 16, I was anxious to get on the roads and waiting till 18 was very difficult for me. After I got my licence, it wasn't exciting any more. I drove because I needed to get to university or work."
Omar thinks it would be convenient to allow 16-year-old university students to drive.
He said: "Most students graduate from high school between the age of 16 and 18. Not being allowed to drive to university causes difficulties. It is either time-consuming for parents to drop them, or students have to wake up early to catch the bus. We should support the idea, to bring the young generation closer to their independence."
