A special section at the General Directorate of Traffic is monitoring traffic violations including drifting and reckless driving in public places, said a senior official.
The punishment for such violation (drifting) may lead to confiscation of vehicles for three months. The punishment also includes hefty fines which might reach up to QR3,000 and the cases of repeated violations are transferred to public prosecution.
“We have special section which monitors videos of drifting which are posted in social media and follow up on the same, and find the violator in hours,” said Colonel Jaber Mohamed Rashid Odaiba, Assistant Director of the Media and Traffic Awareness Department at the General Directorate of Traffic.
Speaking to Qatar Radio, he said: “If drifting is in authorised places like Sealine area, we welcome it because safety measures are offered there.
“But if drifting is done in a public place such as residential areas and areas that will risk people’s lives or destroys public properties, we will take legal measures in less than 24 hours against the violators,” he affirmed.
The Investigation Section of the General Directorate of the Traffic strictly monitors such cases. People are cooperating with the department and the residents can send pictures of violators and the investigation section will follow up them, the official added.
The department earlier has warned youngsters against drifting and reckless driving. The violation may lead to confiscation of vehicles for three months.
The vehicles of the violators and stunt-drivers are seized in case of violating the law and this confiscation of vehicle will be for a maximum period of three months.
In case the driver indulged in drifting destroys public properties, they must pay the cost of the loss occurred.
Earlier a source told The Peninsula that in case the drifting is practised in residential areas which might expose people’s life to danger, vehicle would be booked for 90 days and “may be transferred to the public prosecution depending on the nature of the offence.”
The Department recently seized around 2,000 vehicles for various traffic violations during the month of Ramadan. The violations committed by motorists varied between creating noise, drifting, and racing, and legal measures were taken against the violators.
