The RAK Police has adopted a unique way of convincing motorists to use seatbelts while driving. Motorists who were not wearing the seatbelts while driving on RAK roads were not issued fines but instead, they received a smile with a polite warning from the First Sergeant Samir Abdullah Al Hababi, under the “Buckle-up and Smile Campaign.”
The use of seatbelts is vital in ensuring the safety of driver and passengers in event of a minor or a fatal road accident. The Federal Traffic Rules have also been amended in the UAE to enforce stricter penalties on drivers and passengers failing to buckle-up amongst other major violations. The new rules will be implemented from 1st of July 2017 and before that, motorists need to make themselves more disciplined because the new rules will put sufficient emphasis on the use of seatbelts and motorists will face serious penalties for not complying with the rules.
Also read: Motorists Alert: Reckless Drivers to face Jail Time in the UAE
“Buckle-up and Smile Campaign” Receives Public Appreciation
The video of an RAK Police Officer smiling and wearing a seatbelt on the road is going viral on the social media. The Police Officer in the video can be seen encouraging the motorists to buckle-up with a smile on his face and this amazing gesture of RAK Police has gained huge public appreciation.
The Commander in Chief of the RAK Police, Major General Ali Abdullah Bin Alwan Al Nuaimi admired the act of the Police Officer and stressed the importance of such initiatives in urging the motorists to buckle-up. He was of the view that this initiative influenced the motorists in a positive way and those who were not wearing seatbelts readily and happily accepted the polite warning from the Police Officer and buckled themselves up.
— شرطة رأس الخيمة (@rakpoliceghq) May 13, 2017
Why Using Seat Belts while Driving is Important?
Seatbelts are critical to the safety of driver and passengers, especially in event of a dangerous road accident. Wearing a seatbelt reduces the risk of serious injuries and fatalities caused by a dangerous road accident. Motorists who don’t use seatbelts always remain in danger of being thrown out of the vehicle when a collision occurs. It is because, in case of a collision, the vehicle stops but the bodies of passengers continue to move in the forward direction at the same pace the vehicle was being driven before the collision. Seatbelts reduce the intensity of this forward movement of passengers and hence save them from being thrown out of the vehicle.
Other than the safety aspect, being buckled up while driving will become very important after the implementation of the new traffic rules. According to the new rules, buckling-up will be mandatory not only for the driver and the front seat passenger but also for those on the back seats. The driver will be fined AED 400 and four black points will be issued against the driver’s license if anyone sitting in the car failed to buckle-up.
Traffic Authorities Gear Up for the Implementation of New Traffic Rules
Before the new rules are implemented, the traffic authorities in different states of the UAE are launching different initiatives and awareness campaigns to educate motorists about the new changes in the traffic rules. From increased fines for various serious traffic violations to the introduction of some new traffic violations, traffic rules have been amended to improve the road safety in the UAE. Motorists must learn to be more disciplined and follow traffic rules more carefully, because escaping the penalties for traffic violations will become almost impossible after the implementation of new rules from 1st of July 2017.
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Image Courtesy: RAK Police Twitter
