FROM LEFT. First Lieutenant, Jassim Ghanim Al Thani; Captain Mohammed Safer Al Kuwari, Mohammed Ghanim Al Kubaisi; First Lieutenant Fahd Sherida Al Abdullah; Captain, Mohammed Saeed Khaees; Captain, Khalid Al Ghanim; and First Lieutenant Abdul Wahid Garee
Violations, mostly committed by motorcycle drivers, are driving without license, absence or hiding of number plates and making noise on the roads.
“Most of the violations committed by motorcycles are driving without license and not using number plates, or hiding them so that radars can’t catch the violators. In such cases the punishment is confiscation of the vehicle for 3 months and transferring the drivers to public prosecution,” said an official from investigation section at traffic department yesterday.
He also added during a panel discussion titled “Motorcycles and Traffic Safety” organized by General Directorate of Traffic Department in collaboration with Qatar Center for Motorcycles “ Batabit” that in case the driver repeated the violation, the punishment might reach to QR30,000 as a fine and prison for 3 months.
Some bikers also commit traffic violation when they place the number plates of motorcycles on non designated position. For example, they can place the plates on the left side and this is considered a violation because in such case they can avoid radar.
The panel discussion was held at the traffic department headquarters and attended by a number of officials from department and from ‘Batabit’ center.
It aims to unify awareness efforts made by department and centre to decrease reckless behaviour, and the speakers focused on dangerous of committing errors, motorcycles’ safety conditions and the role of center of spreading awareness among the drivers.
There are some other common careless behaviour like going in groups and not wearing the safety clothes which are against the safety measures.
For the place of seizing motorcycles, he said there are two parking places for those motorcycles: first in The Pearl and the second in Industrial Area.
Captain, Khalid Al Ghanim from Licensing Department said: “The percentage of the passing driving test for motorcycles is good as compared to vehicles. The percentage of failure in vehicle driving test is high due to some new changes.”
He asked motorcycle drivers that registration procedures for licence was easy and the department used to give the appropriate time they want in case the morning shift is not fit to them for the test. About the conditions for registration for driving licence, he said it is common condition like physical fitness, eye test and approval from the company concerned.
