DOHA: Over 8,000 people visited 34th Traffic Week celebrations at Darb Al Saai on Thursday and yesterday to take part in the traffic awareness activities, said a senior official at the General Directorate of Traffic.
“The traffic awareness campaign contributes to significant decrease in traffic accidents and in the first months of this year accidents were far less when compared to the same months of last year in terms of number of traffic accidents and traffic violations,” said Major Jaber Mohamed Rashid Odaiba, Assistant Director of Media and Traffic Awareness Section of the General Directorate of Traffic.
He added that the Traffic Week began last Sunday under the theme “your life is a trust”, and will conclude today. More than 60 entities participated in the activities in order to spread traffic awareness among visitors.
Al Odaiba said: “The participation this year was excellent especially from Qatar Scientific Club which invented two devices that would disconnect cellphone connections in driving vehicles and another one that runs alarms automatically in case a child is left inside the vehicle and can also rescue the child by opening the windows.”
Also, other important participation was a school bus that is equipped with camera.
The can register violation of not keeping a safe distance from school buses. Replying to a question about possible cooperation of the department regarding newly-launched scientific innovations, Al Odaiba said that the Traffic Department will coordinate with authorities concerned and study them specially the device that disconnects cell phone connections in driving vehicles.
He said that there was very useful participation from a section of the Traffic Department which monitors road by cameras and these cameras daily register more than 100 traffic violations whose data is transferred to traffic violations section at the General Directorate of Traffic.
“The aim of these cameras is not only to catch traffic violations bit it also monitors the traffic jam. The participation of this section in Traffic Week is to send a message to people that they have to feel that they are always monitored and the police patrols presence on the roads is not always necessary,” he added.
