Drivers are being told to respect the rules of the road and stop at zebra crossings for pedestrians.
In a country where such crossings are rendered almost useless as so many motorists do not stop for people, police are warning drivers to abide or face a Dh500 fine and six black points.
In a statement Sharjah Police posted on Instagram, they also urged pedestrians to stop crossing busy roads from undesignated places as, despite a drop in the number of crashes in the emirate, run-over accidents kill about 50 people a year.
“For your own safety, please use pedestrian crossings, traffic signals, or cross from near a police officer, who can stop traffic safely,” police said.
According to the federal traffic law that came into force in July, failing to give priority to pedestrians at zebra crossings incurs a fine and black points, while pedestrians who cross from undesignated areas can also be fined Dh200.
Brigadier Arif Al Sherif, deputy director of Sharjah Police Central Operations, said human losses resulting from traffic accidents is a great challenge, especially when young, productive members of society make up the highest percentage of victims.
“Sharjah Police is exerting great efforts to reduce the number of accidents, which mainly happen due to the careless behavior of drivers, therefore, we call on drivers to adhere to traffic regulations and respect the rights of others on the road and to prioritise pedestrians,” he said.
Drivers need to become more aware of their legal and social responsibilities when on the road, Brig Al Sherif added.
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Read more:
Fifty killed in run-over accidents in Sharjah
Better driver training and education key to reducing UAE's road deaths
New pedestrian bridges to ease Sharjah road-crossing dangers
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“The true challenge here is the lack of traffic safety culture among many - even women have been spotted climbing steel safety barriers on main roads in Sharjah then crossing from undesignated areas, which clearly reflects a lack of safety culture,” said Brigadier General Saif Al Zari Al Shamsi, commander-in-chief of Sharjah Police, who also spoke of the continuous police awareness campaigns targeting motorists and pedestrians.
Yasser Muffelh, a 45-year-old Jordanian auditor, said that, when dropping his children at school, he parks on the opposite side of the road due to traffic congestions and, even though there is a pedestrian crossing, most drivers ignore him and others on foot.
“We can wait for more than 10 minutes until a driver would stop,” he said. “When a police officer is present, it’s apparent that motorists stop because they are forced to and not because they have traffic awareness that prompts them to prioritise pedestrians crossing roads.”
Thomas Edelmann, founder of the Road Safety UAE website, said that inconsiderate behavior of drivers is often the cause of incidents at zebra crossings.
“Drivers increase their speed when near junctions to beat the traffic light after it turns yellow; they don't care for pedestrians or other road users,” he said.
“We simply do not care for each other. Our driving culture is me-orientated and extremely egoistic. We must change our driving culture to a caring one as motorists tend to forget that once they step out of their vehicles, they are also pedestrians.
"People here are driving against each other while in other countries where safety culture is present, people drive with each other.
"It starts with education; schools should instill traffic safety values. Education plays a vital role and it will eventually produce a generation with a better road-safety culture."
From January 2016 to the end of January this year, 50 people were killed in run-over accidents in Sharjah, including a 33-year-old woman and her three-year-old daughter who died in June after being hit by a speeding car.
Twenty-two people were severely injured and 163 others suffered moderate to minor injuries in the emirate during the same period, which saw 11,343 people fined for crossing roads at undesignated areas.
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
Final round
25 under - Antoine Rozner (FRA)
23 - Francesco Laporta (ITA), Mike Lorenzo-Vera (FRA), Andy Sullivan (ENG), Matt Wallace (ENG)
21 - Grant Forrest (SCO)
20 - Ross Fisher (ENG)
19 - Steven Brown (ENG), Joakim Lagergren (SWE), Niklas Lemke (SWE), Marc Warren (SCO), Bernd Wiesberger (AUT)
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
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%3Cp%3EThe%20Royal%20Navy%20raid%20is%20the%20latest%20in%20a%20series%20of%20successful%20interceptions%20of%20drugs%20and%20arms%20in%20the%20Gulf%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EMay%2011%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EUS%20coastguard%20recovers%20%2480%20million%20heroin%20haul%20from%20fishing%20vessel%20in%20Gulf%20of%20Oman%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EMay%208%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20US%20coastguard%20vessel%20USCGC%20Glen%20Harris%20seizes%20heroin%20and%20meth%20worth%20more%20than%20%2430%20million%20from%20a%20fishing%20boat%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EMarch%202%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Anti-tank%20guided%20missiles%20and%20missile%20components%20seized%20by%20HMS%20Lancaster%20from%20a%20small%20boat%20travelling%20from%20Iran%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EOctober%209%2C%202022%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ERoyal%20Navy%20frigate%20HMS%20Montrose%20recovers%20drugs%20worth%20%2417.8%20million%20from%20a%20dhow%20in%20Arabian%20Sea%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ESeptember%2027%2C%202022%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20US%20Naval%20Forces%20Central%20Command%20reports%20a%20find%20of%202.4%20tonnes%20of%20heroin%20on%20board%20fishing%20boat%20in%20Gulf%20of%20Oman%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The stats
Ship name: MSC Bellissima
Ship class: Meraviglia Class
Delivery date: February 27, 2019
Gross tonnage: 171,598 GT
Passenger capacity: 5,686
Crew members: 1,536
Number of cabins: 2,217
Length: 315.3 metres
Maximum speed: 22.7 knots (42kph)
Squid Game season two
Director: Hwang Dong-hyuk
Stars: Lee Jung-jae, Wi Ha-joon and Lee Byung-hun
Rating: 4.5/5
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor
You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline
In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support
Name: Brendalle Belaza
From: Crossing Rubber, Philippines
Arrived in the UAE: 2007
Favourite place in Abu Dhabi: NYUAD campus
Favourite photography style: Street photography
Favourite book: Harry Potter
The biog
Simon Nadim has completed 7,000 dives.
The hardest dive in the UAE is the German U-boat 110m down off the Fujairah coast.
As a child, he loved the documentaries of Jacques Cousteau
He also led a team that discovered the long-lost portion of the Ines oil tanker.
If you are interested in diving, he runs the XR Hub Dive Centre in Fujairah
How to avoid crypto fraud
- Use unique usernames and passwords while enabling multi-factor authentication.
- Use an offline private key, a physical device that requires manual activation, whenever you access your wallet.
- Avoid suspicious social media ads promoting fraudulent schemes.
- Only invest in crypto projects that you fully understand.
- Critically assess whether a project’s promises or returns seem too good to be true.
- Only use reputable platforms that have a track record of strong regulatory compliance.
- Store funds in hardware wallets as opposed to online exchanges.
Tightening the screw on rogue recruiters
The UAE overhauled the procedure to recruit housemaids and domestic workers with a law in 2017 to protect low-income labour from being exploited.
Only recruitment companies authorised by the government are permitted as part of Tadbeer, a network of labour ministry-regulated centres.
A contract must be drawn up for domestic workers, the wages and job offer clearly stating the nature of work.
The contract stating the wages, work entailed and accommodation must be sent to the employee in their home country before they depart for the UAE.
The contract will be signed by the employer and employee when the domestic worker arrives in the UAE.
Only recruitment agencies registered with the ministry can undertake recruitment and employment applications for domestic workers.
Penalties for illegal recruitment in the UAE include fines of up to Dh100,000 and imprisonment
But agents not authorised by the government sidestep the law by illegally getting women into the country on visit visas.
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
LAST-16 EUROPA LEAGUE FIXTURES
Wednesday (Kick-offs UAE)
FC Copenhagen (0) v Istanbul Basaksehir (1) 8.55pm
Shakhtar Donetsk (2) v Wolfsburg (1) 8.55pm
Inter Milan v Getafe (one leg only) 11pm
Manchester United (5) v LASK (0) 11pm
Thursday
Bayer Leverkusen (3) v Rangers (1) 8.55pm
Sevilla v Roma (one leg only) 8.55pm
FC Basel (3) v Eintracht Frankfurt (0) 11pm
Wolves (1) Olympiakos (1) 11pm
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
