ABU DHABI // Residents and office workers in a busy city district are calling for a pedestrian bridge over Sheikh Zayed Street.
Pedestrians are risking their lives by darting across seven lanes of traffic near the Sheikh Zayed Tunnel exit on the Corniche.
At 10am on a Sunday morning, The National counted 26 pedestrians crossing six lanes of traffic from the LuLu Centre to the Royal International Hotel in Al Zahiyah, formerly the Tourist Club Area, in 30 minutes.
Another 25 pedestrians dodged traffic from the site of the Porsche showroom building near the Sheraton Hotel on the Corniche to cross to the other side.
Ramphel Dhull, 51, a diving supervisor from India, crossed the road from LuLu Centre to reach Al Diar Capital Hotel near the Corniche Road in Al Zahiyah.
The speed limit on the tunnel is set at 80kph, except for the exit points at the Corniche and the Port, which are 60kph.
“They must come up with a solution so pedestrians can cross the road safely,” Mr Dhull said. “I know Abu Dhabi is doing a good job at building roads and bridges.”
A pedestrian crossing next to the Adnoc petrol station was closed when road construction began in 2007 and the centre of the road was barricaded. But the temporary white and red barriers have not deterred people from crossing the road at inappropriate locations.
When Mohammed Arif, a surveyor, is unable to get a parking spot near his office in the LuLu Centre, he drives to the other side of the road, parks his SUV behind The Royal International Hotel, and crosses to his office.
"It's dangerous but what can we do?" asked Mr Arif, 30. "There are not enough parking spaces near LuLu Centre."
There are two main issues affecting pedestrian safety, said Glenn Havinoviski, an associate vice president of transport systems at the US traffic-management company Iteris.
“There is virtually no pedestrian access across Salam Street between Hamdan Street and the Corniche, literally in the heart of Abu Dhabi,” Mr Havinoviski said.
“Many of the people who cross high-speed roads seem to have no perception of how dangerous high-volume, high-speed traffic is.
“But in extremely hot weather they may not be willing to walk 500 metres or more to the nearest safe crossing.”
For Hussam Kassim, 40, an IT professional from Palestine who has lived in the capital for 10 years, parking behind the hotel and crossing the road has become a daily routine.
“Everybody knows it’s dangerous to cross the road but we have no choice,” Mr Kassim said.
On a recent Thursday morning, Jonathan Pujols, 33, a consultant at the Emirates Advance Investments Group, crossed the road from Corniche Hospital.
“My wife is in the hospital and I wanted to get her some flowers,” Mr Pujols said. “There’s no place to cross the road safely. There is a need to mitigate the risk so pedestrians can travel safety on foot.”
Sufian Bashir, a software consultant who has lived in Abu Dhabi for four years, said it was more convenient for people to cross the road instead of walking to the Hamdan and Sheikh Zayed streets traffic junction.
“There’s no other option,” Mr Bashir said. “Thousands are crossing both sides of the road every day.”
Pedestrians are among the most vulnerable road users, comprising up to 45 per cent of road deaths and injuries globally, said Dino Kalivas, chairman of the driver education and training committee at the International Road Federation.
“Pedestrians have no secondary safety system,” Mr Kalivas said.
Infrastructure such as traffic signals, walkways and public transport to separate pedestrians and cyclists from vehicles requires considerable time and money to implement, he said.
“The Urban Planning Council has a very ambitious and worthwhile plan to make Abu Dhabi more pedestrian friendly,” Mr Havinoviski said.
“Wider sidewalks and more well-defined and protected zebra crossing are a wise idea.”
The pavement in front of the LuLu Centre’s car park, and the one across the street, have been closed to pedestrians.
A representative at Al Jaber Precision Engineering and Contracting confirmed the company had been awarded the project but declined to provide further details.
The municipality did not respond to several requests for comment.
But in January last year, the authority revealed plans to open a pedestrian bridge at the tunnel exit in early June 2013.
rruiz@thenational.ae
GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)
The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Super%20Mario%20Bros%20Wonder
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Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
'Worse than a prison sentence'
Marie Byrne, a counsellor who volunteers at the UAE government's mental health crisis helpline, said the ordeal the crew had been through would take time to overcome.
“It was worse than a prison sentence, where at least someone can deal with a set amount of time incarcerated," she said.
“They were living in perpetual mystery as to how their futures would pan out, and what that would be.
“Because of coronavirus, the world is very different now to the one they left, that will also have an impact.
“It will not fully register until they are on dry land. Some have not seen their young children grow up while others will have to rebuild relationships.
“It will be a challenge mentally, and to find other work to support their families as they have been out of circulation for so long. Hopefully they will get the care they need when they get home.”
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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HER%20FIRST%20PALESTINIAN
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The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
What are the influencer academy modules?
- Mastery of audio-visual content creation.
- Cinematography, shots and movement.
- All aspects of post-production.
- Emerging technologies and VFX with AI and CGI.
- Understanding of marketing objectives and audience engagement.
- Tourism industry knowledge.
- Professional ethics.
Engine: 80 kWh four-wheel-drive
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 402bhp
Torque: 760Nm
Price: From Dh280,000
Our Time Has Come
Alyssa Ayres, Oxford University Press
Results
Stage 4
1. Dylan Groenewegen (NED) Jumbo-Visma 04:16:13
2. Gaviria (COL) UAE Team Emirates
3. Pascal Ackermann (GER) Bora-Hansgrohe
4. Sam Bennett (IRL) Deceuninck-QuickStep
5. Caleb Ewan (AUS) Lotto Soudal
General Classification:
1. Adam Yates (GBR) Mitchelton-Scott 16:46:15
2. Tadej Pogacar (SLO) UAE Team Emirates 0:01:07
3. Alexey Lutsenko (KAZ) Astana Pro Team 0:01:35
4. David Gaudu (FRA) Groupama-FDJ 0:01:40
5. Rafal Majka (POL) Bora-Hansgrohe
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
IF YOU GO
The flights
FlyDubai flies direct from Dubai to Skopje in five hours from Dh1,314 return including taxes. Hourly buses from Skopje to Ohrid take three hours.
The tours
English-speaking guided tours of Ohrid town and the surrounding area are organised by Cultura 365; these cost €90 (Dh386) for a one-day trip including driver and guide and €100 a day (Dh429) for two people.
The hotels
Villa St Sofija in the old town of Ohrid, twin room from $54 (Dh198) a night.
St Naum Monastery, on the lake 30km south of Ohrid town, has updated its pilgrims' quarters into a modern 3-star hotel, with rooms overlooking the monastery courtyard and lake. Double room from $60 (Dh 220) a night.
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
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
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
The biog
Age: 19
Profession: medical student at UAE university
Favourite book: The Ocean at The End of The Lane by Neil Gaiman
Role model: Parents, followed by Fazza (Shiekh Hamdan bin Mohammed)
Favourite poet: Edger Allen Poe
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Dubai World Cup prize money
Group 1 (Purebred Arabian) 2000m Dubai Kahayla Classic - $750,000
Group 2 1,600m(Dirt) Godolphin Mile - $750,000
Group 2 3,200m (Turf) Dubai Gold Cup – $750,000
Group 1 1,200m (Turf) Al Quoz Sprint – $1,000,000
Group 2 1,900m(Dirt) UAE Derby – $750,000
Group 1 1,200m (Dirt) Dubai Golden Shaheen – $1,500,000
Group 1 1,800m (Turf) Dubai Turf – $4,000,000
Group 1 2,410m (Turf) Dubai Sheema Classic – $5,000,000
Group 1 2,000m (Dirt) Dubai World Cup– $12,000,000
