FUJAIRAH // Fewer people died on the emirate’s roads last year despite an increase in the number of cars and crashes, police said.
The number of accidents in Fujairah increased by 47 per cent, from 10,591 in 2014 to 15,548 last year, but road deaths fell by 32 per cent, from 28 to 19.
The number of injuries also decreased, by 25 per cent from 319 to 239.
Police said that there had been an increase in minor accidents but that awareness campaigns had helped to reduce the number of major accidents.
Col Ali Al Yamahi, director of the Department of Traffic and Patrol at Fujairah Police, said the force launched eight traffic and road safety awareness campaigns, targeting children, drivers and pedestrians, as well as organising 92 vehicle inspection campaigns throughout the year to ensure drivers were abiding by regulations.
“The awareness campaigns stressed the importance of safety on the road ... and the numbers show that we are on the right track,” he said.
“We arranged for 23 inspection campaigns quarterly during the last year to catch traffic law violators and we intend to increase the number of inspections this year to be 30 every three months.”
He said the increase in the number of accidents was normal and wa a result of numerous factors, including the increasing number of cars on the road each year.
Col Al Yamahi said the traffic department was working with the public works department and Fujairah Municipality to increase road capacity by widening major thoroughfares.
“The public works department is working on two main roads, Al Fassel and Al Nakheel roads, by adding one more lane in each direction to maximise the capacity of the roads and improve traffic flow,” he said.
Awareness campaigns utilised social media, mobile text messages and brochures to spread information, in addition to the traditional methods of organising lectures in public places, schools and institutions.
“Our goal was to reach the maximum number of people to guide them and spread awareness of road safety and violation penalties,” Col Al Yamahi said.
“We had many campaigns, some of them [aimed at] children on how to cross the roads and the importance of using a seat belt. For heavy vehicle drivers [there was] one on how to maintain the car and tyres during summer and the safety of pedestrians.”
The traffic department will continue with the awareness campaigns and community outreach programmes this year to keep influencing the behaviour of all road users and increasing road safety awareness.
rhaza@thenational.ae