Call for traffic fines to be linked to offenders’ salaries
Fines for speeding should increase in line with the offender’s salary, lawyers say.
Steeper fines for people with higher income would ensure that they were more than an irritation to offenders, providing a greater deterrent.
The standard fine is Dh300 for breaching the speed limit by not more than 20kph, and Dh600 for driving 30kph over the limit – a stern hit for the average driver but manageable for high earners.
And police do not issue black points unless a motorist is driving at more than 50kph above the speed limit, which some lawyers say is too lenient.
“In some European countries, like Switzerland, the penalty for serious traffic violations is determined by factors such as whether it was committed in a residential area and if the individual is a repeat offender,” said Ziad Galadari, chairman of Galadari Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Mr Galadari said that the current fines did pose a deterrent, but not for wealthy people.
“Accordingly, the fine amount is calculated based on a percentage of the offender’s monthly income, reaching up to 30 per cent,” he said.
Last year, the UK introduced penalties of up to 175 per cent of weekly income. Before that, most fines were less than the equivalent of Dh500.
Lawyer Mahmood Al Mashhadani proposed that authorities should also consider where an offence was committed.
“If someone is caught driving over the speed limit in a residential area, he or she should be fined twice as much than if they committed the same offence on Emirates Road,” Mr Al Mashhadani said.
Recent statistics suggest fines are having an effect on bad driving. The number of people killed on Abu Dhabi roads last year fell by about a third, police said on Tuesday, as they revealed more than 4 million fines were issued.
A total of 199 deaths were recorded last year, down from 289 in 2016. The overall number of accidents also dropped from 1,740 to 1,533.
National figures for last year are expected to be released soon, but in the first half of