Brigadier Juma Salem Bin Suwaidan, Director of the General Department of Traffic at Dubai Police, warned about the dangers of not maintaining the legal safe distance between vehicles, as this violation causes serious or fatal accidents. He confirmed that statistics show that vehicle collisions resulting from failure to keep a safe distance are among the most common types of accidents.

This came following the death of one person and injuries to two others with varying degrees of severity in a collision that occurred last Monday evening between three vehicles on Emirates Road, after Dubai Club Bridge heading towards Sharjah, due to insufficient safe distance. This is considered one of the main causes of dangerous traffic accidents on highways.

Brigadier Bin Suwaidan explained that the command and control room received the accident report at 1:30 PM. Preliminary investigations showed that the accident was caused by one driver failing to maintain a sufficient safe distance behind the vehicle in front, which led to the collision, resulting in one death and two injuries ranging from moderate to minor. The injured were transported to the hospital for necessary medical care.

He pointed out that traffic accident experts immediately moved to the site and began inspection procedures and collecting technical evidence to determine the exact causes of the accident. Meanwhile, traffic patrols secured the accident site and organized traffic flow to ensure the speedy arrival of ambulances and specialized teams. Field teams also worked to remove the damaged vehicles as quickly as possible to ensure smooth traffic flow and avoid congestion.

The Director of the General Department of Traffic called on drivers to exercise caution and attention while driving, stressing that adherence to traffic regulations not only protects the driver but also contributes to protecting all road users and achieving a safer and more sustainable traffic environment in the emirate.

He confirmed that maintaining a safe distance is a fundamental element of defensive driving, which helps preserve lives and property and reduce losses resulting from accidents. He noted that Dubai Police continuously implement awareness programs targeting various community segments through field and electronic campaigns to highlight the most impactful violations on traffic safety, such as speeding, distracted driving, and failure to maintain a sufficient distance. He also noted that the federal traffic law stipulates a fine of 400 AED and 4 black points for violating the safe distance rule.