Abu Dhabi Police to stop discount on traffic fine

Abu Dhabi: From August 1, motorists will no longer receive a 50 per cent discount on traffic fines for offences committed in the emirate of Abu Dhabi, police said on Sunday.

The discount, which is automatically applied when residents pay their fines, will not apply for any violations that are recorded from August onwards, although the discount will stand for offences registered before that.

Abu Dhabi Police said the decision to impose the full amount of the traffic fine aims to enhance road safety in the emirate.

In May, Gulf News reported that the emirate witnessed a 42 per cent jump in traffic-related fatalities in the first four months of the year alone. A total of 77 traffic deaths occurred in the first quarter of 2016, compared with 54 traffic deaths during the same period last year (2015). There were also 489 traffic accidents recorded in the quarter, compared with 477 last year.

“All the methods of awareness and control we have carried out seem to have had a limited effect on drivers, who are the reason behind road incidents. Around 88 of the traffic accidents took place in clear weather, indicating drivers’ accountability,” Brigadier Hussain Al Harithi, director-general of central operations at the Abu Dhabi Police General Headquarters, said earlier.

Sudden swerving led to 15 per cent of the traffic accidents, while a failure to maintain a safe distance between vehicles accounted for 13 per cent of incidents. Other common violations included speeding, failure to stick to the lane, and jumping traffic lights.

Drivers aged between 18 and 33 were reported to have caused 44 per cent of road accidents in the first quarter of 2016, followed by those aged 31 to 45, who were responsible for 38 per cent of incidents. Fifteen accidents during the period were also attributed to underage drivers (below 18 years).

The discounts for traffic fines were first introduced in Abu Dhabi in 2010, after the implementation of a black points system for traffic fines. Residents told Gulf News that the discounts helped reduce the burden of hefty fines for minor violations.

“I once had to pay a Dh1,000 fine for speeding near a roundabout, even though there were no speed limits specified on nearby road signs. In such cases, the 50 per cent discount would have felt like a boon,” Nadia Al Khamzi, a 34-year-old media executive from Oman, told Gulf News.

“That said, most motorists drive very recklessly. I don’t know if road behaviour has specifically been worse this year alone. In that sense, I do believe that having to pay the full fine will induce a degree of caution and respect for road rules among motorists,” she added.

Other motorists mentioned that traffic offences had seemed to peak during Ramadan, especially sudden swerving.

Anurag Kashyap, a 40-year-old marketing manager from India, said stricter penalties and monitoring are always effective in making roads safer.

“I expect that having to pay the full fine will force drivers to be more respectful to other road users,” he said.