Abu Dhabi's transport authority has given the green-light for a new safety scheme slashing speeds on roads during hazardous weather conditions.
The Department of Transport's traffic safety committee has agreed a plan to cut speed limits to 80kph when visibility for drivers is reduced to 200 metres or less.
Motorists will be alerted to the reduced speed limits by notices on smart towers - structures displaying road messages - located on routes throughout the emirate.
The scheme will allow authorities to swiftly reduce limits and improve safety with quick effect during fog and dust storms.
Abu Dhabi's transport authority has been hailed for "embracing technology" to help make the roads safer, by a leading campaigner.
But Thomas Edelmann, managing director of RoadSafetyUAE, says drivers must also be accountable for their own actions when travelling during adverse weather.
“It should go without saying that the speed limit has to go down and the distance between vehicles has to go up when visibility is poor,” said Mr Edelmann
“The level of driver attention also has to go up as well. The main point is that speed should go down though.
“This is a great initiative and it is good to see authorities embracing technology to improve road safety and not just talking about it.
“This is also tangible proof of the technology that the UAE has to make these things happen.”
Stephen Levins, 35, from Ireland, a business consultant who regularly completes the Dubai to Abu Dhabi commute has backed the move, but is unsure how it will work in practice.
“This sounds great in theory but I am not sure how they will manage this or decide when speed limits can or can’t be decreased,” he said.
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“Hazardous weather can often be a matter of opinion and often comes down to the quality and experience of the driver. Speed limits and rule changes happen quite often but some people are going to drive the way they want to anyway.”
Speed cameras will be adjusted accordingly to ensure drivers are penalised if they breach the temporary limits.
The initiative was announced by the traffic committee on Wednesday.
The towers carrying the modified speed limits have been installed on Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Street, on the stretch between Abu Dhabi and Dubai, and Sheikh Khalifa Street.
All vehicles will be asked to follow the announced speeds until visibility returns to safe levels.
For roads without smart towers, a fixed speed sign with a traffic light will be installed to signal the change in speed limits.
Visibility levels will be monitored using channels such as the National Centre of Meteorology, while visibility sensors will be fixed to smart towers.
The Department of Transport is reminding motorists to keep to safe distances between vehicles and not to overtake or change lanes when visibility is low.
In May, police in Dubai said they recorded 400 accidents - from shunts to bumps - on a single Sunday when a dust storm swept over the city.
Despite the conditions many motorists continued to tailgate at speed and swerve between lanes, police said.
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.
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
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
Results
Ashraf Ghani 50.64 per cent
Abdullah Abdullah 39.52 per cent
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar 3.85 per cent
Rahmatullah Nabil 1.8 per cent
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
The biog
Favourite films: Casablanca and Lawrence of Arabia
Favourite books: Start with Why by Simon Sinek and Good to be Great by Jim Collins
Favourite dish: Grilled fish
Inspiration: Sheikh Zayed's visionary leadership taught me to embrace new challenges.
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
INDIA'S%20TOP%20INFLUENCERS
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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
