UAE road safety experts have called for better education and tighter regulations to help clamp down on reckless electric scooter riders who put lives at risk by flouting traffic rules.
Dubai Police last week raised the alarm over the dangers of the irresponsible use of e-scooters and e-bikes across the emirate, as their popularity continues to rise.
The force said five riders had been killed and another 29 injured in accidents involving either e-scooters or e-bikes in the first eight months of the year.
Ignoring traffic lights, not wearing helmets and riding outside of designated zones have been cited as common causes of accidents.
The Dubai government has sought to ensure the safe use of e-scooters in an effort to take cars off the road and reduce emissions.
People who do not have a full driving licence must apply for a free e-scooter permit and pass an online test, available at www.rta.ae.
Riders must be at least 16 and helmets are mandatory.
The e-scooter speed limit is 20kph.
Raising awareness
Thomas Edelmann, managing director of Road Safety UAE, called for clarification on where e-scooters are allowed to be used, saying they are often seen outside of designated zones established by authorities.
“RTA [Dubai Roads and Transport Authority] determined 21 zones where e-scooters can be used but we see them everywhere,” he said.
“The regulations must cover all roads, not only the 21 designated areas, and we need to clarity on which infrastructure can be used outside of the designated areas.”
He called for more awareness on safe e-scooter use and said parents have a role to play in educating younger riders.
“We need to raise awareness and educate riders. Parents must play a key role and employers, too. They must raise awareness and educate their staff.
“Overall, we need strong rider education.
“The rules of wearing helmets, lights and reflective vests are well-known but ignored.”
Dr Mostafa Al Dah, an Emirati road safety researcher, has conducted in-depth investigations into more than 300 serious and fatal traffic accidents in the UAE and UK.
He spoke of a lack of awareness of road rules among e-scooter riders.
“It is important for e-scooter users to familiarise themselves with traffic rules, understand signal meanings and learn how to execute turns and navigate safely.
“A significant portion of e-scooter riders lack driving licences and don’t know how to respond to emergencies on the roads.
“They should only use e-scooters in designated areas and paths approved by the Roads and Transport Authority in Dubai.”
Putting safety first
He said common causes for fatal accidents were speeding, driving against the flow of traffic and not wearing reflective vests or helmets.
“It is important to make sure there are lights and proper brakes in the e-scooter,” he added.
“Some of them speed and can cause accidents as they lose control.
“Both residents and tourists frequently embark on e-scooter journeys without any prior knowledge of how to operate them safely, particularly when navigating through bustling streets and unfamiliar terrain,” he said.
He added that absence of protective measures on e-scooters, such as seat belts, made it all the more important to exercise caution on the road and keep to the speed limit.
“There are severe consequences of accidents involving e-scooters, which can lead to injuries such as concussion or broken necks when riders exceed speeds of 20kph,” he said. “The human body is not prepared to crash at these speeds.
“There is growing popularity of electric scooters as a convenient and eco-friendly mode of transportation for short-distance travel, but the increasing number of e-scooter accidents remains a cause for concern.”
Police issued more than 10,000 fines to riders breaking safety rules in the first eight months of the year.
Maj Gen Saif Al Mazroui, director of Dubai Police's traffic department, said the statistics emphasised the need to tackle reckless riders.
He called on the public to adhere to safety regulations when using the electric vehicles, such as using specific paths, adhering to speed limits and wearing helmets.
A helmet could be difference between life and death
A leading doctor in Dubai has urged anyone riding an e-scooter to make sure they take the necessary precautions.
“Helmets can dramatically reduce the risk of serious head injuries by over 50 per cent, so making the effort to wear a helmet each time you ride will guarantee a safer scooting experience,” said Dr Ali Ganai, specialist in emergency medicine and sport medicine at Mediclinic Welcare Hospital, Dubai.
“It is always better to be safe than fashionable.
“Electric scooter riders are more likely to suffer from concussions, skull fractures and sever head injuries which can lead to severe disabilities, and in some cases death, which could be prevented by wearing a helmet.”
Defence review at a glance
• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”
• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems
• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.
• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%
• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade
• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Banned items
Dubai Police has also issued a list of banned items at the ground on Sunday. These include:
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Political flags or banners
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Bikes, skateboards or scooters
Our legal advisor
Rasmi Ragy is a senior counsel at Charles Russell Speechlys, a law firm headquartered in London with offices in Europe, the Middle East and Hong Kong.
Experience: Prosecutor in Egypt with more than 40 years experience across the GCC.
Education: Ain Shams University, Egypt, in 1978.
The specs
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The five stages of early child’s play
From Dubai-based clinical psychologist Daniella Salazar:
1. Solitary Play: This is where Infants and toddlers start to play on their own without seeming to notice the people around them. This is the beginning of play.
2. Onlooker play: This occurs where the toddler enjoys watching other people play. There doesn’t necessarily need to be any effort to begin play. They are learning how to imitate behaviours from others. This type of play may also appear in children who are more shy and introverted.
3. Parallel Play: This generally starts when children begin playing side-by-side without any interaction. Even though they aren’t physically interacting they are paying attention to each other. This is the beginning of the desire to be with other children.
4. Associative Play: At around age four or five, children become more interested in each other than in toys and begin to interact more. In this stage children start asking questions and talking about the different activities they are engaging in. They realise they have similar goals in play such as building a tower or playing with cars.
5. Social Play: In this stage children are starting to socialise more. They begin to share ideas and follow certain rules in a game. They slowly learn the definition of teamwork. They get to engage in basic social skills and interests begin to lead social interactions.
Who has been sanctioned?
Daniella Weiss and Nachala
Described as 'the grandmother of the settler movement', she has encouraged the expansion of settlements for decades. The 79 year old leads radical settler movement Nachala, whose aim is for Israel to annex Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where it helps settlers built outposts.
Harel Libi & Libi Construction and Infrastructure
Libi has been involved in threatening and perpetuating acts of aggression and violence against Palestinians. His firm has provided logistical and financial support for the establishment of illegal outposts.
Zohar Sabah
Runs a settler outpost named Zohar’s Farm and has previously faced charges of violence against Palestinians. He was indicted by Israel’s State Attorney’s Office in September for allegedly participating in a violent attack against Palestinians and activists in the West Bank village of Muarrajat.
Coco’s Farm and Neria’s Farm
These are illegal outposts in the West Bank, which are at the vanguard of the settler movement. According to the UK, they are associated with people who have been involved in enabling, inciting, promoting or providing support for activities that amount to “serious abuse”.
Six large-scale objects on show
- Concrete wall and windows from the now demolished Robin Hood Gardens housing estate in Poplar
- The 17th Century Agra Colonnade, from the bathhouse of the fort of Agra in India
- A stagecloth for The Ballet Russes that is 10m high – the largest Picasso in the world
- Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1930s Kaufmann Office
- A full-scale Frankfurt Kitchen designed by Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, which transformed kitchen design in the 20th century
- Torrijos Palace dome
The Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index
The Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index
Mazen Abukhater, principal and actuary at global consultancy Mercer, Middle East, says the company’s Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index - which benchmarks 34 pension schemes across the globe to assess their adequacy, sustainability and integrity - included Saudi Arabia for the first time this year to offer a glimpse into the region.
The index highlighted fundamental issues for all 34 countries, such as a rapid ageing population and a low growth / low interest environment putting pressure on expected returns. It also highlighted the increasing popularity around the world of defined contribution schemes.
“Average life expectancy has been increasing by about three years every 10 years. Someone born in 1947 is expected to live until 85 whereas someone born in 2007 is expected to live to 103,” Mr Abukhater told the Mena Pensions Conference.
“Are our systems equipped to handle these kind of life expectancies in the future? If so many people retire at 60, they are going to be in retirement for 43 years – so we need to adapt our retirement age to our changing life expectancy.”
Saudi Arabia came in the middle of Mercer’s ranking with a score of 58.9. The report said the country's index could be raised by improving the minimum level of support for the poorest aged individuals and increasing the labour force participation rate at older ages as life expectancies rise.
Mr Abukhater said the challenges of an ageing population, increased life expectancy and some individuals relying solely on their government for financial support in their retirement years will put the system under strain.
“To relieve that pressure, governments need to consider whether it is time to switch to a defined contribution scheme so that individuals can supplement their own future with the help of government support,” he said.
Revival
Eminem
Interscope
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
In-demand jobs and monthly salaries
- Technology expert in robotics and automation: Dh20,000 to Dh40,000
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- Production engineer: Dh30,000 to Dh40,000
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North Pole stats
Distance covered: 160km
Temperature: -40°C
Weight of equipment: 45kg
Altitude (metres above sea level): 0
Terrain: Ice rock
South Pole stats
Distance covered: 130km
Temperature: -50°C
Weight of equipment: 50kg
Altitude (metres above sea level): 3,300
Terrain: Flat ice
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Moral education needed in a 'rapidly changing world'
Moral education lessons for young people is needed in a rapidly changing world, the head of the programme said.
Alanood Al Kaabi, head of programmes at the Education Affairs Office of the Crown Price Court - Abu Dhabi, said: "The Crown Price Court is fully behind this initiative and have already seen the curriculum succeed in empowering young people and providing them with the necessary tools to succeed in building the future of the nation at all levels.
"Moral education touches on every aspect and subject that children engage in.
"It is not just limited to science or maths but it is involved in all subjects and it is helping children to adapt to integral moral practises.
"The moral education programme has been designed to develop children holistically in a world being rapidly transformed by technology and globalisation."
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Dr Amal Khalid Alias revealed a recent case of a woman with daughters, who specifically wanted a boy.
A semen analysis of the father showed abnormal sperm so the couple required IVF.
Out of 21 eggs collected, six were unused leaving 15 suitable for IVF.
A specific procedure was used, called intracytoplasmic sperm injection where a single sperm cell is inserted into the egg.
On day three of the process, 14 embryos were biopsied for gender selection.
The next day, a pre-implantation genetic report revealed four normal male embryos, three female and seven abnormal samples.
Day five of the treatment saw two male embryos transferred to the patient.
The woman recorded a positive pregnancy test two weeks later.
Results
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Green ambitions
- Trees: 1,500 to be planted, replacing 300 felled ones, with veteran oaks protected
- Lake: Brown's centrepiece to be cleaned of silt that makes it as shallow as 2.5cm
- Biodiversity: Bat cave to be added and habitats designed for kingfishers and little grebes
- Flood risk: Longer grass, deeper lake, restored ponds and absorbent paths all meant to siphon off water
Wonka
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About Karol Nawrocki
• Supports military aid for Ukraine, unlike other eurosceptic leaders, but he will oppose its membership in western alliances.
• A nationalist, his campaign slogan was Poland First. "Let's help others, but let's take care of our own citizens first," he said on social media in April.
• Cultivates tough-guy image, posting videos of himself at shooting ranges and in boxing rings.
• Met Donald Trump at the White House and received his backing.
World Cricket League Division 2
In Windhoek, Namibia - Top two teams qualify for the World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe, which starts on March 4.
UAE fixtures
Thursday February 8, v Kenya; Friday February 9, v Canada; Sunday February 11, v Nepal; Monday February 12, v Oman; Wednesday February 14, v Namibia; Thursday February 15, final
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
