A Dh1billion project to tackle congestion on the road from Sharjah to Dubai is now finished, after three years of disruption to traffic. Sarah Dea /The National
A Dh1billion project to tackle congestion on the road from Sharjah to Dubai is now finished, after three years of disruption to traffic. Sarah Dea /The National

Dh1 billion roadworks finally complete



A Dh1 billion project to tackle congestion on Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Road from Sharjah to Dubai has finally been completed.

The project to build five lanes in each direction as well as several bridges linking surrounding areas in Sharjah, including Al Dhaid main road, has been ongoing for the past three years.

Barriers have now been removed for vehicles heading from Sharjah towards Dubai and on to Abu Dhabi in the direction of the National Paints roundabout, reported Al Ittihad, the Arabic language sister paper of The National.

The remaining construction work on bridges linking peripheral areas to the main road are expected to be completed during the last quarter of the year.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Road is one of the Northern Emirates’ main highways with traffic flowing from Ras Al Khaimah through Umm Al Quwain, Ajman and Sharjah to Dubai, before connecting with Sheikh Zayed Road and beyond to the capital.

The road is 140 kilometres long, of which 73km are in Dubai.

The President’s Initiative Committee has been collaborating with the Ministry of Public Works on construction. The Dubai-Sharjah section, which previously had two lanes in each direction, was inaugurated last month with five lanes in each direction.

newsdesk@thenational.ae

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Teaching your child to save

Pre-school (three - five years)

You can’t yet talk about investing or borrowing, but introduce a “classic” money bank and start putting gifts and allowances away. When the child wants a specific toy, have them save for it and help them track their progress.

Early childhood (six - eight years)

Replace the money bank with three jars labelled ‘saving’, ‘spending’ and ‘sharing’. Have the child divide their allowance into the three jars each week and explain their choices in splitting their pocket money. A guide could be 25 per cent saving, 50 per cent spending, 25 per cent for charity and gift-giving.

Middle childhood (nine - 11 years)

Open a bank savings account and help your child establish a budget and set a savings goal. Introduce the notion of ‘paying yourself first’ by putting away savings as soon as your allowance is paid.

Young teens (12 - 14 years)

Change your child’s allowance from weekly to monthly and help them pinpoint long-range goals such as a trip, so they can start longer-term saving and find new ways to increase their saving.

Teenage (15 - 18 years)

Discuss mutual expectations about university costs and identify what they can help fund and set goals. Don’t pay for everything, so they can experience the pride of contributing.

Young adulthood (19 - 22 years)

Discuss post-graduation plans and future life goals, quantify expenses such as first apartment, work wardrobe, holidays and help them continue to save towards these goals.

* JP Morgan Private Bank 

Top financial tips for graduates

Araminta Robertson, of the Financially Mint blog, shares her financial advice for university leavers:

1. Build digital or technical skills: After graduation, people can find it extremely hard to find jobs. From programming to digital marketing, your early twenties are for building skills. Future employers will want people with tech skills.

2. Side hustle: At 16, I lived in a village and started teaching online, as well as doing work as a virtual assistant and marketer. There are six skills you can use online: translation; teaching; programming; digital marketing; design and writing. If you master two, you’ll always be able to make money.

3. Networking: Knowing how to make connections is extremely useful. Use LinkedIn to find people who have the job you want, connect and ask to meet for coffee. Ask how they did it and if they know anyone who can help you. I secured quite a few clients this way.

4. Pay yourself first: The minute you receive any income, put about 15 per cent aside into a savings account you won’t touch, to go towards your emergency fund or to start investing. I do 20 per cent. It helped me start saving immediately.

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Number of employees: 4
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Director: Todd Phillips 

Rating: 2/5

The specs

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Power: 154bhp

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