DUBAI // Transport chiefs plan to link up with other GCC countries to collect the millions of unpaid parking and Salik fines accumulated by vehicles in the region.
The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) and Ministry of Interior have met to discuss the matter.
"I'm not sure what the monetary amount is exactly but it is a few million fines we are still waiting to have paid," said Ahmed Hashim Bahrozyan, chief executive of the RTA's licensing agency.
"The current procedure of retrieving payments is done manually. The RTA sends a list of fines of non-UAE vehicles to the Ministry of Interior and they forward the information to the concerned departments of the other [Arabian] Gulf countries.
"This has not been effective. We are now planning to link the GCC through an electronic system. This will allow the information to reach a lot faster."
Mr Bahrozyan said the RTA was not sure how long it such a system would take to implement.
A committee from the ministry and RTA will visit traffic departments in GCC countries to establish a mechanism for the collection of fines.
Dubai pays its fines to other countries, said Mr Bahrozyan. "The percentage of fines paid by Dubai is much higher than that of any other GCC country," he said.
malkhan@thenational.ae
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Salah in numbers
€39 million: Liverpool agreed a fee, including add-ons, in the region of €39m (nearly Dh176m) to sign Salah from Roma last year. The exchange rate at the time meant that cost the Reds £34.3m - a bargain given his performances since.
13: The 25-year-old player was not a complete stranger to the Premier League when he arrived at Liverpool this summer. However, during his previous stint at Chelsea, he made just 13 Premier League appearances, seven of which were off the bench, and scored only twice.
57: It was in the 57th minute of his Liverpool bow when Salah opened his account for the Reds in the 3-3 draw with Watford back in August. The Egyptian prodded the ball over the line from close range after latching onto Roberto Firmino's attempted lob.
7: Salah's best scoring streak of the season occurred between an FA Cup tie against West Brom on January 27 and a Premier League win over Newcastle on March 3. He scored for seven games running in all competitions and struck twice against Tottenham.
3: This season Salah became the first player in Premier League history to win the player of the month award three times during a term. He was voted as the division's best player in November, February and March.
40: Salah joined Roger Hunt and Ian Rush as the only players in Liverpool's history to have scored 40 times in a single season when he headed home against Bournemouth at Anfield earlier this month.
30: The goal against Bournemouth ensured the Egyptian achieved another milestone in becoming the first African player to score 30 times across one Premier League campaign.
8: As well as his fine form in England, Salah has also scored eight times in the tournament phase of this season's Champions League. Only Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo, with 15 to his credit, has found the net more often in the group stages and knockout rounds of Europe's premier club competition.
Copa del Rey
Semi-final, first leg
Barcelona 1 (Malcom 57')
Real Madrid (Vazquez 6')
Second leg, February 27
