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Join Date: 05 Mar 2015
Location:  UAEPosts: 54 |
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Speed limit on Dubai-Al Ain highway stretch reduced |
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Speed limit on Dubai-Al Ain highway stretch reduced
The decision to lower the speed on this sector of Dubai-Al Ain Road was primarily driven by the need to maintain public safety and curb traffic accidents. Dubai — The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has decided to reduce the maximum speed on a sector of the Dubai-Al Ain Road stretching from Emirates Road Interchange to Bu Kadrah Interchange from 120km/h to 100km/h starting from April 1, to curb accidents. Engineer Maitha bin Udai, CEO of Traffic and Roads Agency at the RTA, said: “The decision to lower the speed on this sector of Dubai-Al Ain Road was primarily driven by the need to maintain public safety and curb traffic accidents. Recent statistics have shown that this area witnessed seven fatal accidents, four serious accidents, and nine moderate accidents due to speeding between 2011 and 2013. Moreover, the proportion of heavy trucks using the road in both directions has grown to 14 per cent. “High speed is considered a direct contributor to 20 per cent of fatal crashes, and a secondary contributor to 80 per cent of fatal crashes in the emirate of Dubai which obviously tells that speed control is one of the most effective tools of reducing traffic accidents. The mechanism of setting the posted speed depends on a number of parameters including the designed speed of the road, actual speed of the road (the 85th Percentile Speed), urbanisation level on both roadsides, pedestrian movement, availability of schools, mosques and other vital facilities, scope of crashes witnessed, traffic volumes, and the high probability of serial accidents,†explained Maitha. “One of the key tools of controlling the speed in Dubai is the radar system, and accordingly studies focused on the grace margin between the road speed and the grace speed according to the best international practices with the aim of saving the lives of road users. This will contribute to realising the third key strategic driver of the Dubai Strategic Plan 2015, that is to render the city an ideal and safe place for living and business. Many of the advanced countries allow a grace margin not exceeding 10km per hour, and it was therefore concluded that it was essential to set a grace margin speed in a technical manner,†said Maitha. “In this context the RTA is continuously revising maximum speeds on some vital roads and in the emirate of Dubai to increase or reduce the speed limits depending on the condition of the road and the surrounding environment in cooperation with our strategic partners. In coordination with the General HQ of the Dubai Police, a number of preventive measures will be taken to maintain the safety of road users,†said Maitha. Source:khaleejtimes http://www.khaleejtimes.com/kt-article-display-1.asp?xfile=data/transport/2015/March/transport_March36.xml§ion=transport |
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