DUBAI // Thousands of commuters have been stuck in almost endless traffic jams in the last few days as the combined effects of roadworks, Ramadan and the start of the school year brought chaos on the streets of Dubai.
In the Greens and Al Barsha areas of "new Dubai", traffic has been backed up for several kilometres and the gridlock worsened yesterday as motorists tried in vain to find less congested routes through nearby neighbourhoods.
Some reported being stuck in underground car parks for 20 minutes before they could start their journey.
Twenty minutes into his journey to work yesterday, South African engineer Larry McGuinness had only moved a few hundred metres from his home in the Greens, a residential community swamped by hordes of commuters from the new end of Dubai.
"There were security guards out trying to direct the traffic, but they weren't having much success," Mr McGuinnesss said. "There are just far too many cars trying to go through there on to Sheikh Zayed Road. It took more than an hour to get to work in Bur Dubai, and most of that time was spent just trying to get out of the Greens."
Traffic heading into Dubai is being forced into a single lane leaving the Greens, and with commuters from other areas joining in, the small streets cannot cope.
"I sat for 10 minutes just waiting to leave the underground car park on Sunday," said Daniel Brown, an accountant who lives in the Greens.
"There was a solid line of cars on the street outside, and nobody would give way. Eventually a guy who was in front of me waiting to leave the car park had to go and ask one of the drivers to give us room to get out."
A spokesman for Emaar, the developer which owns the Greens, the Springs, the Lakes and the Meadows, blamed a combination of construction work, changed working hours during Ramadan, and the start of the school year for the chaos.
"With construction work under way on the roads parallel to Sheikh Zayed Road, several drivers are using the road network within The Springs and The Greens communities to access Sheikh Zayed Road," he said.
"Also, the change in office and school timings during Ramadan has also resulted in added traffic. Emaar is undertaking measures to ease traffic congestion by restricting the tendency of drivers to use the road network of the residential communities for accessing Sheikh Zayed Road. More security personnel have also been assigned to regulate the traffic flow and for guiding drivers."
A spokeswoman for the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) said additional traffic was normal at certain times during Ramadan, but she was unable to say when the construction work affecting the flow of cars would end.
Maj Faisal Essa, from the Dubai Police Traffic Department, said officers were on the lookout for bad driving by people frustrated with delays. "We know it can be frustrating, but that is no excuse to jump red lights or ignore other traffic laws," he said. "We have started a campaign against this kind of behaviour, and I think people realise we are strict."
As part of an effort to ease congestion right along Sheikh Zayed Road, RTA officials said two new toll gates near Al Safa, on Sheikh Zayed Road, and Al Maktoum Bridge would be activated from today.
Salah al Marzouqi, Director of RTA Intelligent Traffic Systems Department, said the new toll gate on Al Maktoum Bridge will be free of charge while the Floating Bridge is closed from 10 pm to 6 am.
* The National
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
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2.30pm: Dubai Creek Tower – Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 (Dirt) 1,200m; Winner: Marmara Xm, Gary Sanchez (jockey), Abdelkhir Adam (trainer)
3pm: Al Yasmeen – Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 1,700m; Winner: AS Hajez, Jesus Rosales, Khalifa Al Neyadi
3.30pm: Al Ferdous – Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 1,700m; Winner: Soukainah, Sebastien Martino, Jean-Claude Pecout
4pm: The Crown Prince Of Sharjah – Prestige (PA) Dh200,000 (D) 1,200m; Winner: AF Thayer, Ray Dawson, Ernst Oertel
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5pm: Palma Spring – Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 2,000m; Winner: Es Abu Mousa, Antonio Fresu, Abubakar Daud
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KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
A little about CVRL
Founded in 1985 by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, the Central Veterinary Research Laboratory (CVRL) is a government diagnostic centre that provides testing and research facilities to the UAE and neighbouring countries.
One of its main goals is to provide permanent treatment solutions for veterinary related diseases.
The taxidermy centre was established 12 years ago and is headed by Dr Ulrich Wernery.
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The White Lotus: Season three
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NO OTHER LAND
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Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
Globalization and its Discontents Revisited
Joseph E. Stiglitz
W. W. Norton & Company
The specs: 2019 BMW X4
Price, base / as tested: Dh276,675 / Dh346,800
Engine: 3.0-litre turbocharged in-line six-cylinder
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 354hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque: 500Nm @ 1,550rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 9.0L / 100km
The%20specs
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Under 12 – Minerva Academy
Under 14 – Unam Pumas
Under 16 – Fursan Hispania
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The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
Du Plessis plans his retirement
South Africa captain Faf du Plessis said on Friday the Twenty20 World Cup in Australia in two years' time will be his last.
Du Plessis, 34, who has led his country in two World T20 campaigns, in 2014 and 2016, is keen to play a third but will then step aside.
"The T20 World Cup in 2020 is something I'm really looking forward to. I think right now that will probably be the last tournament for me," he said in Brisbane ahead of a one-off T20 against Australia on Saturday.
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
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Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson
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Rating: 2/5
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
What are the GCSE grade equivalents?
- Grade 9 = above an A*
- Grade 8 = between grades A* and A
- Grade 7 = grade A
- Grade 6 = just above a grade B
- Grade 5 = between grades B and C
- Grade 4 = grade C
- Grade 3 = between grades D and E
- Grade 2 = between grades E and F
- Grade 1 = between grades F and G
