DUBAI // Traffic experts hope a scheme that rewards good drivers instead of punishing bad ones can succeed where other road-safety campaigns have failed.
Under the White Points scheme launched by Dubai Police last week, drivers in the emirate will be awarded a point for every month they keep a clean sheet of either traffic or Salik fines.
After 12 months they can exchange them for gift vouchers or use them to cancel black points accrued before or after the clean sheet.
It is hoped this positive approach will have more of an effect on driver behaviour than schemes targeting bad driving. While safe drivers will have a reason to continue their good habits, less safe drivers will be motivated by the potential rewards of changing their ways.
Britta Lang, a principal traffic psychologist at the Transport Research Laboratory in Abu Dhabi, said the white point scheme was a "positive and new approach".
"Positive rewards have more sustainability in changing driving behaviour," Mrs Lang said. "I do not think this has been implemented anywhere else in the world."
She is advising the authorities to combine the scheme with an educational campaign, but also warned that for the system to work, care must be taken over the extent of the rewards.
"The devil is in the details," she said. "One should be careful which kind of violations can be deleted."
Motorists can also use white points to cancel traffic fines handed out after their clean sheet, provided the offence did not also result in a black point.
Drivers who have accumulated 24 black points from one severe traffic offence will not be allowed to collect any white points for a year.
Davis Francis, 25, a marketing officer, could be among the motorists receiving a message of congratulations on January 13 - the scheme has been backdated and will reward all drivers who have been fine-free during 2012.
Mr Francis, who lives and works in Dubai, has not acquired a single traffic fine since gaining his licence eight years ago.
"When I started driving I was scared of acquiring fines or black points and then I kind of got into the habit of being responsible," he said. "The [scheme] will make people more responsible and it will encourage them to drive more safely."
Naser Al Dahmani, 33, an aviation engineer who amassed Dh25,000 in fines this year, said: "Instead of handing out fines to people or providing rewards to those who are already committed to road safety, the traffic department should concentrate on those with bad traffic records and try to understand their mistakes, solving them through education and rewarding them for any improvement they make."
Varkki Pallathucheril, a professor of urban planning at the American University of Sharjah's College of Architecture and Design, agreed that rewards were needed for any scheme to work.
"[But] I am not sure exchanging white points with black points is a good solution," he said. "If people accumulate enough white points it may be an incentive to carry out certain offences as they know that they can waive it off."
Mr Francis echoed this view. "There's a possibility I'll be less responsible when in a hurry if I knew I could take away black points."
wissa@thenational.ae
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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TO A LAND UNKNOWN
Director: Mahdi Fleifel
Starring: Mahmoud Bakri, Aram Sabbah, Mohammad Alsurafa
Rating: 4.5/5
How%20champions%20are%20made
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Company%20profile
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Sinopharm vaccine explained
The Sinopharm vaccine was created using techniques that have been around for decades.
“This is an inactivated vaccine. Simply what it means is that the virus is taken, cultured and inactivated," said Dr Nawal Al Kaabi, chair of the UAE's National Covid-19 Clinical Management Committee.
"What is left is a skeleton of the virus so it looks like a virus, but it is not live."
This is then injected into the body.
"The body will recognise it and form antibodies but because it is inactive, we will need more than one dose. The body will not develop immunity with one dose," she said.
"You have to be exposed more than one time to what we call the antigen."
The vaccine should offer protection for at least months, but no one knows how long beyond that.
Dr Al Kaabi said early vaccine volunteers in China were given shots last spring and still have antibodies today.
“Since it is inactivated, it will not last forever," she said.
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre 6-cyl turbo
Power: 374hp at 5,500-6,500rpm
Torque: 500Nm from 1,900-5,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 8.5L/100km
Price: from Dh285,000
On sale: from January 2022
Company%20Profile
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DUBAI%20BLING%3A%20EPISODE%201
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RESULTS
West Asia Premiership
Thursday
Jebel Ali Dragons 13-34 Dubai Exiles
Friday
Dubai Knights Eagles 16-27 Dubai Tigers
Business Insights
- Canada and Mexico are significant energy suppliers to the US, providing the majority of oil and natural gas imports
- The introduction of tariffs could hinder the US's clean energy initiatives by raising input costs for materials like nickel
- US domestic suppliers might benefit from higher prices, but overall oil consumption is expected to decrease due to elevated costs
JOKE'S%20ON%20YOU
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Her most famous song
Aghadan Alqak (Would I Ever Find You Again)?
Would I ever find you again
You, the heaven of my love, my yearning and madness;
You, the kiss to my soul, my cheer and
sadness?
Would your lights ever break the night of my eyes again?
Would I ever find you again?
This world is volume and you're the notion,
This world is night and you're the lifetime,
This world is eyes and you're the vision,
This world is sky and you're the moon time,
Have mercy on the heart that belongs to you.
Lyrics: Al Hadi Adam; Composer: Mohammed Abdel Wahab
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre turbo 4-cyl
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Power: 190bhp
Torque: 300Nm
Price: Dh169,900
On sale: now
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates, Etihad and Swiss fly direct from the UAE to Zurich from Dh2,855 return, including taxes.
The chalet
Chalet N is currently open in winter only, between now and April 21. During the ski season, starting on December 11, a week’s rental costs from €210,000 (Dh898,431) per week for the whole property, which has 22 beds in total, across six suites, three double rooms and a children’s suite. The price includes all scheduled meals, a week’s ski pass, Wi-Fi, parking, transfers between Munich, Innsbruck or Zurich airports and one 50-minute massage per person. Private ski lessons cost from €360 (Dh1,541) per day. Halal food is available on request.
Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
Results
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup – Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (Dirt) 1,600m; Winner: RB Kings Bay, Abdul Aziz Al Balushi (jockey), Helal Al Alawi (trainer)
7.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 1,600m; Winner: AF Ensito, Fernando Jara, Mohamed Daggash
8pm: Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,400m; Winner: AF Sourouh, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
8.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,800m; Winner: Baaher, Fabrice Veron, Eric Lemartinel
9pm: Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 2,000m; Winner: Mootahady, Antonio Fresu, Eric Lemartinel
9.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh70,000 (D) 2,000m; Winner: Dubai Canal, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar
10pm: Al Ain Cup – Prestige (PA) Dh100,000 (D) 2,000m; Winner: Harrab, Bernardo Pinheiro, Majed Al Jahouri
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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