Time to focus attention on UAE’s minibus drivers

It’s reasonable for parents to expect that their children will be safe while journeying to and returning from school. Unfortunately, the mode of transport for their precious cargo is often a cause for concern and parents will tell you they have little option than to put their children onto minibuses. But that is about to change. As The National reported yesterday, the School Transport Committee Abu Dhabi has ruled that no minibus or microvan can be registered as a vehicle for school transportation after this academic term. The directive arrives on the heels of a similar decision by the Dubai authorities.

There are many reasons why these vehicles are far more dangerous than larger buses. Apart from their relatively small size and lack of safety features, their heavy rear axles, high centre of gravity and unequal weight distribution make them unstable when driven at speed. The level of danger can be understood from statistics: 11 per cent of fatal accidents in 2012 involved school minibuses, while in the first six months of last year, two people were killed and 63 injured in 30 collisions involving such vehicles. But statistics do not always reveal the entire truth.

Many of these accidents were caused by reckless driving rather than the design of the vehicles. All of us are aware how some drivers display forms of aggression to other road users when they express objection. Many drivers of these minibuses also show reluctance to comply with the guidelines over the number of passengers they can carry. Thus vehicles that are normally designed to accommodate a maximum of 14 people are often packed with 20 passengers.

One way to make this mode of transport safer could be to make insurance companies insist on special training for van drivers. Another effective measure could be to place details of toll-free numbers on bumper stickers and to connect these numbers to official bodies, such as Adec or the police, allowing unsafe driving to be reported to the relevant governing body. The authorities have implemented a number of rules to make school transport safer. Now it may be time to focus on driver behaviour.