Traffic police constantly on patrol, official warns.

Byline: Staff Report

Abu Dhabi: Some 275 drivers who lost their licences for accumulating 24 black points were arrested on Abu Dhabi's roads during the first six months of this year, police said yesterday.

"Thirty-three drivers were arrested in Abu Dhabi city, while the rest were caught in the capital's suburbs. They all were referred to court and are facing three months' imprisonment and a fine of not less than Dh5,000," said Lieutenant Colonel Hamad Bin Athith Al Ameri, head of the traffic investigation section at the Abu Dhabi Traffic and Patrolling Department.

Drivers, who accumulate 24 points in a year lose their licence - for three months on the first occasion, six months on the second and for a year on the third, in which case the drivers must also undergo retraining to get their licence back.

Points are awarded for more than 70 offences, from the trivial to the most serious.

Four major offences are each worth 24 points on their own: driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol; failing to stop after an accident in which someone has been injured; driving a vehicle without number plates and, for lorry drivers, overtaking dangerously.

In each case the vehicle is confiscated for 60 days.

Another six offences will cost a driver 12 points and getting their vehicle impounded for 30 days, including causing death; racing; reckless driving; and exceeding the speed limit by 60km/h.

But tooting your horn in a disturbing way is worth two points, along with a Dh100 fine, while taxi drivers face three points and a Dh100 fine if a passenger opens a door on the left side of the vehicle.

Lieutenant Colonel Al Ameri warned that traffic police are patrolling Abu Dhabi's roads around-the-clock to keep roads safe and these drivers away.

Black points expire after a year but all may not be lost if you find yourself perilously close to 24.

More than half the traffic violations recorded in the capital so far this year have been for speeding, police have said.

A total of 138,919 motorists have been caught breaking the speed limit between January 1 and April 5, representing 56 per cent of traffic cases.

Overall, 244,927 road violations were recorded during the period.

Patrols were increased and speed detector cameras mounted across the emirate to reduce the number of road casualties.

In the first four months of this year police also issued 19,535 parking tickets and 14,988 tickets for disrupting traffic flow.

There were 8,134 violations for failing to wear a seat belt and 5,502 for jumping a red light. A total of 1,834 pedestrians were fined for jaywalking.

Other offences included failing to give way to pedestrians on crossings (64); stopping in yellow boxes (93). The number of people driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs was 144. Have your say What more can be done to educate drivers about the dangers of reckless driving? What do you think of drivers' behaviour in the UAE? Tell us at [e-mail] Aaor fill in the comments form below.

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