Traffic violations choke Ittihad road

Sharjah: Many peak hour commuters are adamant on bullying other motorists on Al Ittihad Road by pushing them aside and using the hard shoulder as an extra lane despite police warnings, say weary motorists.

Commuters driving to Dubai are losing time on the gridlocked roads as the four-way road transforms into six lanes every day.

"I do my best to have patience and stay on my lane, but it is very difficult to maintain your composure when you see 30 cars driving by on the hard shoulder and there aren't any police to stop them," said Hassan Abdul Latif, a Sharjah resident who said that stricter traffic rules should be enforced in order to put a complete stop to the traffic violations.

Maitha Ali, a sales executive, said the chaos starts once she reaches the Al Nahda Interchange.

"The worst is when I reach the interchange and I see all the cars coming from the Al Tawun Mall road. The motorists do not have any consideration for others, they drive on the hard shoulder before you know it, there are two extra lanes," she said, adding that the chaotic traffic worsens when the hard shoulder starts to narrow down. However, motorists who drive on the hard shoulder defended their actions by claiming that there are not enough lanes to accommodate the vast amount of cars and out of frustration it is easier to overtake the traffic jam.

"I drive on the hard shoulder as often as I can because in that way I can save up to 20 minutes when I overtake the other cars. The authorities should pave an extra lane because the demand and the space for it is there," said Shaima Khalid, who also explained that at times police do patrol the roads.

Most of the bad drivers I see on Dubai roads come from other emirates like Sharjah, Ajman and Ras Al Khaimah, and the ones who usually take the hard lane from Abu Dhabi. On Thursday, I was stuck on Dubai Bypass road for almost 1.5 hours and several cars raced through the hard lane. Time and time again I have decided to be patient and not be like them. Hopefully police enforce their rules and take strict action on these people.
Sanjeev
Dubai,UAE
Posted: September 22, 2007, 14:23

Similar incidents of violations happen every day on UAE roads, especially in Dubai where motorists are often inconsiderate. Most motorists never use the indicator when they want to switch lanes.
Fajer
Dubai,UAE
Posted: September 22, 2007, 09:22

I have been a victim of road bullying myself, especially on the busy highways in Dubai. The best idea to resolve this menace is by installing cameras on hard shoulders to catch violators.
Keith
Dubai,UAE
Posted: September 22, 2007, 09:11

Motorists also use the hard shoulder, especially when there are not patrol vehicles on sight. We need more policemen on the roads to catch traffic violators.
Sebastian
Dubai,UAE
Posted: September 22, 2007, 08:34

The traffic and stress of driving on the Sharjah-Dubai road has forced me to move to Dubai from Sharjah and pay much more on rent.
Karkain
Dubai,UAE
Posted: September 22, 2007, 03:42