Dubai: The Federal Traffic Council recommended that the front seat next to the driver should be removed from all small and big buses.
Major General Mohammad Saif Al Zafein, Head of the Federal Traffic Council and Assistant to the Dubai Police Chief for Operations Affairs, said people sitting in the front seat often die or sustain severe injuries when buses are involved in an accident, he said on Thursday.
The council has also recommended waiving registration fees for environmentally friendly vehicles to encourage people to opt for such cars, he said.
To regulate and control commercial licences, he said, it was recommended that the number of commercial number plates — usually issued to car showrooms for test drive cars — be limited to a certain number.
“The current law allows an unlimited number of plates, but the recommendation stipulates that the number of plates issued should be determined by the number of vehicles. We are thinking of one number plate for every 10 cars,” Maj Gen Al Zafein said.
To reduce problems caused by trucks, a proposal to unify the hours of prohibition of truck movement across the UAE was made.
“There should also be truck resting areas all over the UAE, so trucks do not have to park on the hard shoulder during those restricted hours. Parking on the hard shoulder poses a great risk of accident,” he noted.
Lastly, he said, they recommended that the grace period for reporting a missing number plate should be reduced to 48 hours from the current 14 days.
“Fourteen days is too long. If that number plate is stolen and the thief uses it to commit a crime the person will be held responsible, as it would be impossible to prove he lost the number plate if he did not report it. It is best to report it as soon as possible, within 24 hours, but it could be difficult so we decided to make it 48 hours,” he said.
