Dr. E.K. Mohammed Shaffe, the IISD Principal, presents a memento to Captain Saeed Al-Asooj Al-Ahmary. (Saudi Gazette photo by Faisal Aboobacker Ponnani)DAMMAM: There were 484,805 accidents recorded in the Kingdom last year resulting in a total loss of SR13 billion, according to Captain Saeed Al-Asooj Al-Ahmary during an awareness campaign for Indian expatriates on the new Saher traffic held at Shamiana restaurant auditorium, Sunday night. Al-Ahmary said there were a total of 6,142 deaths recorded last year because of road accidents and around nine million traffic violations. “The situation in the Kingdom is that every one-and-a-half hours, one person dies in a road accident. Every 1,000 accidents cause the death of about 13 persons and every 15 minutes an accident occurs leaving at least one person handicapped,” he said. He emphasized that the Saher system is aimed at reducing the number of road accidents and the mortality rate on the Kingdom's roads. Al-Ahmary explained that the Saher system will be introduced in two phases in the Eastern Province. “The first phase has already been implemented in the Eastern Province since Jan. 1, 2011 and mainly concentrates on signal crossing violations and speeding. The second phase will focus on driver's not using mobile phones and wearing seat belts while driving,” he said. “We have two ways of monitoring, one is fixing cameras at traffic signals and the other is using moving vehicles with fixed cameras roaming the streets to catch violators,” he added. “The speed limit on the Dammam to Al-Khobar highway, the Dammam to Jubail Highway, and the Dammam to Abqaiq Highway is 110 kilometers an hour,” said Al-Ahmary. He said that Saher is being implemented after conducting awareness programs among citizens and expatriates. “This is the first time an expatriate community has invited a traffic authority to provide awareness on traffic rules. I hope others will also follow suit,” he said. He advised expatriates to make sure about the ownership of their vehicles and carry valid documents while traveling. “All the penalties will be charged to the vehicle's owner, so it is very important to transfer the ownership when selling or buying vehicles.” He said vehicles can be registered at the traffic department's website or by sending an SMS to 888993 (STC), 623333 (Mobily), 709422 (Zain) using your mobile number. “If any violations occur, an SMS will be sent to inform the violators within 24 hours,” he said. He also warned those who make duplicate number plates to escape from Saher, that “it is a criminal act”. Dr. E.K. Mohammed Shaffe, the International Indian School Principal, inaugurated the awareness seminar. Shaffe said he is planning to conduct an awareness campaign in the school for parents of students and school bus drivers with the cooperation of the traffic department. Mohammed Najathi, an official translator at Dammam Court, translated the speech of Al-Ahmary for the audience.
