Dubai: Misuse of federal roads for any commercial or construction purposes can set you back by thousands of dirhams as the Ministry of Public Works imposes a new set of rules for operations and commercial occupancy of these roads.

According to a statement issued by the ministry, the Cabinet Resolution No (17) for 2010 has mandated the ministry to monitor and maintain all federal roads and the ministry will implement the resolution from this month.

“The UAE’s infrastructure is the best world-wide, and a key supporter of the comprehensive development in the country, thanks to the directives of our wise leadership regarding the development of this vital sector with quality buildings and federal roads that link all parts of the UAE to each other, as well as promote international and domestic trade,” said Dr Abdullah Bel Haif Al Nuaimi, Minister of Public Works, announcing the decision to implement the new decision.

He added that the UAE has achieved global competitiveness in terms of quality of roads, which are classified as the best in the world, providing innovative solutions for comprehensive development across the UAE, which he said the cabinet resolution aims to maintain.

The cabinet resolution empowers the ministry to assess the damages caused by traffic accidents and infringements on federal roads and determining the resulting cost of repair.

The ministry, in coordination with the Ministry of Interior, will also be responsible for determining speed limits and installing radars on federal roads.

The resolution also entrusted the Ministry of Public Works to collect fees on advertising and publicity materials placed on federal roads and facilities, in coordination with the Ministry of Finance.

The ministry announced a series of fines and fees in its effort to regulate operations on federal roads.

Some of the biggest fees announced are the Dh200,000 annual payment required to be made by stone crushers operating on category one federal roads and Dh100,000 on category two roads.

Fuel stations and other service providers on federal roads will have to pay an annual fee of Dh15,000.

Placing a signboard on federal roads will cost between Dh5,000 and Dh3,000.

A monthly fee of Dh15,000 to Dh10,000 is to be paid by private firms for building temporary exit and entrance routes to federal roads.

All entities seeking to have operations on federal roads need to get a prior No Objection Certificate from the ministry. Renewal of the NOC should be applied 14 days prior to the expiry date of the existing NOC.