Officials at a symposium to spread traffic awareness at Darb El Saai.
As part of its efforts to promote traffic safety, the Traffic Safety and Engineering Department sends weekly reports to the Traffic Department about the places which witness more traffic accidents, said a senior official. “Every week, the Engineering Department sends report to the department about the "black spots" which witness more accidents, then we send traffic patrols to monitor such places,” said Brigadier Mohammed Saad Al Kharji, Director of the Traffic Department.
“Traffic awareness is the responsibly of all road users. The role of parents is also very important because children usually imitate their parents. So we must respect traffic rules then our children will also respect them," Al Kharji said, addressing a symposium under the title “towards a unified media strategy to spread traffic awareness” at Darb El Saai, venue of the 33rd GCC Traffic Week. “Our aim is not to catch violations and earn money. The speed radars’ locations are very clear to everyone. People can see them from a distance of about one kilometre," he added.
He said the radars will not record a speeding violation if the speed is a little higher than the given speed limit. For instance, if the speed limit 80km/h, the radar will catch the vehicle if it moves at a speed of over 90km/h.
Major Jaber Mohamed Rashid Odaiba, Assistant Director of Media & Traffic Awareness Department, also addressed the event attended by members of delegations from traffic departments of other GCC countries, among others.
Speakers at the symposium stressed the importance of using social media in raising traffic awareness and the need to focus on students from different educational levels, because the major victims of traffic accidents are youth. “We should focus also on schools and we should install traffic villages in the schools in order to increase traffic awareness among students especially primary schools”, said one of the speakers.
About the unified GCC media strategy for traffic awareness, Major Jabor said: “In March last year, Qatar was assigned to prepare the strategy, and the GCC will have a meeting next May to discuss the draft. Currently we are working on the strategy and its aim is to reduce major accidents and deaths and thereby reduce the financial losses due to accidents."
