Tailgating incidents have increased in Sharjah and Abu Dhabi during the first half of 2017. Tailgating was amongst the major reasons for fatal road accidents in 2016 and it hasn’t changed much in 2017. Despite consistent efforts by traffic authorities to nab down offenders, tailgaters still persist with their reckless driving behaviour and have caused fatal road accidents all over the UAE in 2017. Both Sharjah and Abu Dhabi observed a noticeable increase in tailgating violations where motorists failed to leave enough distance between vehicles and put multiple lives at risk.
Numbers Reveal a Significant Rise in Tailgating Violations
Tailgating, along with lane swerving and over-speeding, remains a serious traffic violation in the UAE. In the first quarter of 2017, 5,150 tailgaters were fined in Abu Dhabi as this dangerous traffic violation caused 73 traffic accidents, in which eight people lost their lives and three were seriously injured.
On the other hand, tailgating violations also increased in Sharjah where motorists were put in a dangerous situation by tailgaters multiple times, especially on the highways. Among all traffic violations, tailgating caused the maximum number of road accidents in Sharjah in the first half of 2017. There were 21,805 tailgating-related accidents recorded in Sharjah that left 44 people injured. Other major traffic violations in Sharjah included poor lane discipline, using mobile phone while driving and over-speeding.
Problems Faced by Motorists at the Hands of Tailgaters
The most common type of tailgaters are those who try to push the driver in front out of the fast lane by honking loud horns excessively, flashing lights repeatedly, and leaving hardly any distance between vehicles. Motorists have recorded serious reservations against tailgaters in a recent survey conducted by RoadSafetyUAE. This survey is conducted twice a year in order to record the perceptions of motorists about specific traffic violations in the UAE.
According to the motorists, tailgaters build panic on the road as they don’t allow others enough time to move from one lane to another and that increases the probability of not only a rear-end collision, but also a collision with vehicles in other lanes. Continuous flashing of lights and too much use of loud horns can distract drivers that can result in fatal collisions between vehicles. Tailgaters also put their own lives under serious threat as they can lose control of their own vehicles while trying to overtake other vehicles at high speeds.
How can Tailgating Violations be reduced?
According to official data, tailgating remains the third major reason for road deaths in the UAE. While the traffic authorities have tried to reduce tailgating violations by improving the monitoring of roads with advanced radars and increased patrolling, creating road safety awareness among motorists is still something that can be given more attention. Thomas Elderman, founder of RoadSafetyUAE, suggests that motorists must be regularly informed of the hazards of tailgating and the penalties they can face for committing such a dangerous traffic violation through public seminars and other awareness campaigns.
Amended traffic rules in the UAE were implemented on July 1, 2017, and in the newly amended traffic rules, the penalties for not leaving enough distance between vehicles include a fine of AED 400 and 4 black points against the offender’s driving licence. While the fines for over speeding and lane swerving have almost been doubled in the newly amended law, a significant increase in the tailgating fine could have helped discourage motorists from committing this violation.
Also read: New Traffic Rule Amendments in the UAE – Everything You Need to Know
Driver-Assist Features that can Help Prevent Tailgating
While tailgating predominantly exhibits the reckless behaviour of drivers, it can at times only be a result of inattentive or distracted driving. There are some driver assist features that can help motorists in maintaining attention on the road and avoid unintentional tailgating.
Here are some such driver-assist features:
- Forward Collision Warning
- Intelligent Speed Assist
- Adaptive Cruise Control
- Emergency Brake Assist
- Automatic Emergency Braking
These features in modern-day cars alert the driver through various audible or visual warnings if they detect an unsafe distance from the vehicle ahead. This is how drivers can make use of modern technologies to be more attentive and avoid tailgating to ensure maximum safety on the UAE roads.
If you are planning to buy a new vehicle with better safety features, then don’t forget that with us you can sell your used car in just 30 minutes while all the post-sale paperwork is handled by SellAnyCar.com’s team.
