NEWS FROM THE UAE
SOURCE : THE NATIONAL
RTA works to keep up with Dubai traffic
DUBAI - FEB. 08: Traffic congestion could be eased in Dubai as soon as the end of June, when 11 key roadworks projects are due to be finished.
The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) is spending Dh3.8 billion (US$1.03bn) on the projects, which include phase one of the busy Ittihad Road, Dubai Bypass Road, the upper deck of the Financial Centre Road, Al Nahda-Beirut Interchange, Mirdif Bridge, Jumeirah Lakes Interchange, Al Barsha road projects and several other roads in the city.
The construction has created severe congestion all over the city, sparking traffic jams in residential communities such as The Greens, Emirates Hills, Marina and those neighbouring the Dubai-Sharjah border.
Several road works in Al Barsha include the widening of Jebel Ali Race Course and a flyover connecting The Greens to Internet City that should be done this month.
Key roads in Jumeirah Lakes Interchange located between Fifth and Gardens Interchange serving the Marina, Ibn Battuta Mall, the Gardens and Emirates Hills are to be completed in May, as are road expansions in the Springs and Meadows. Construction work in those communities started in 2006 at a cost of Dh475 million.
In June, the Safouh Road project linking Dubai Marina to Beach Road will complete the majority of work at the southern end of the city.
Also in June, the RTA will complete the expansion of the Dubai Bypass to six lanes from three in each direction, between the busy outskirts of Sharjah up to Al Rawiyyah Interchange at the Dubai-Al Ain Road, to alleviate heavy traffic on Emirates Road.
“RTA is currently undertaking phase four of Dubai Bypass Road in a six-lanes sector in each direction, extending 25km from Jebel Ali-Al Hebab Road up to the entrance of the emirate of Abu Dhabi,” said Mattar al Tayer, the RTA’s chairman and executive director. “It also offers motorists coming from the Northern emirates heading towards Abu Dhabi and vice versa an external traffic line without having to go downtown.”
The first of a two-phase plan to turn Al Ittihad Road into an expressway will be completed this month with the opening of two underpasses at the Galadari intersection and the expansion of the motorway to six lanes from four.
“Considering the immense nature of Al Ittihad Road-widening project, which carries a cost tag of Dh800m, and as RTA is keen to deliver it in a record time to ease traffic on this vital arterial road, the project was divided into two separate contracts,” Mr al Tayer said. “It included widening works extending 5.7km, starting from Sheikh Rashid Road, crossing al Garhoud Bridge and extending to Al Sho’ala Interchange.”
By the end of February the RTA will open Dhiyafa and Al Mina Roads Interchange, costing Dh121m. The project includes widening Al Mina Road in a sector extending to four lanes in each direction, in addition to improvements to the intersection of Al Mina Road with Dhiyafa and Al Wasl Road. It includes a 45-metre pedestrian subway in front of the Dry Dock Gate at Port Rashid.
Construction on the Dh605m upper-deck flyover of the Financial Centre Road that passes between Burj Dubai and Dubai Mall will also be finished in June. It will include a three-lane motorway towards Jumeirah and five lanes in the direction of the Business Bay Crossing and Al Khail Road serving Nad al Sheba, Al Ain and Emirates roads.
“In June, Mirdiff Bridge upgrade project, which costs about Dh236m, will be opened and the project comprises improvement of the existing Bridge at the Al Khawaneej-Algiers Roads Junction separating Murdiff from Muhaisneh,” Mr al Tayer said.
The old bridge is being replaced by a flyover interchange and a wider Al Khawaneej Road.
This month the RTA will also complete the construction and expansion of various local roads in the emirate, such as the Oud Mateenah Two Road, costing Dh50m. Both Amman and Khartoum Roads will have extra lanes added while Al Nahdah Two will be opened at a cost of Dh118m.
It is also hoped the Al Nahda-Beirut Interchange and the construction of Amman Road linking Al Nahda One and Two can be finished in the first half of the year.
‘Witchcraft’ gang swindled Dh20,000 from victims
ABU DHABI - FEB 08: Abu Dhabi Police have arrested a five-member gang of professional beggars who allegedly swindled more than Dh20, 000 from victims through begging and practising what was described as witchcraft.
Police said the gang consisted of two married Arab couples and a woman, aged 23 to 33, who used their children, aged two to 10, to attract the sympathy of their targets. The gang’s members have confessed to their crimes, police said, adding the gang transferred the Dh20,000 out of the UAE. One of the gang’s members had entered the UAE illegally, police said.
Police learned of the gang while investigating a complaint made by an Emirati woman to an FM radio station.
The woman complained of being a victim of fraud and begging and said she was approached by an Arab woman who said that her medical conditions were caused by witchcraft.
The accused woman proposed to cure the woman through witchcraft for a fee, police said.
Lt Col Ibrahim al Hanai, head of the police department’s anti-organised-crime section, urged other victims of the gang file complaints.
Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of the Interior, ordered that the children used in the scam be cared for and that the investigation be sped up.
According to police, the women would wait outside jewellery and women’s clothing stores and offer palm-reading services. Lt Col Hanai said their usual tactic was to tell their targets that they were under a spell that needed to be removed. They would demand large amounts of money to do it.
Police said the gang members would also enter shops and work in teams of two to get money from shoppers. One person distracted a shopper by showing them an item and then another would beg for money. One would then take the shopper’s money while they were distracted.
Police said the accused also went to hospitals where they would pretend to be sick and tell people they had lost their health cards. The gang members would ask for money and then attempt the palm-reading scam.
Col Maktoum Sharifi, director of the criminal investigation department, said that once police had been made aware of the complaint, he ordered an investigation team formed. Within 48 hours they had arrested one of the women accused, who was apprehended while reading the palms of an undercover officer. The captured woman led police to the rest of the gang.
Police plan community networks in Abu Dhabi
ABU DHABI - FEB 08: The emirate's police intend to set up a network of “friends” in every school, neighbourhood and company to help address crime and social issues and form better relationships with the community.
They hope the increased contact with the community will spread awareness of social issues, raise mutual respect and help cut crimes such as drug abuse and traffic offences.
The community police departments in the capital and Al Ain are establishing the networks under two major projects, one in schools and the other in businesses and residential neighbourhoods.
The campaigns follow a significant expansion of the workload and public profile of the community police in the past year.
Major Mubarak bin Mhairoum al Amiri, the acting director of Abu Dhabi community police department, said the mission of the community police was to spread a culture of social security and awareness.
“[It is to] create a secure and friendly environment in residential areas, provide the best services, facilitate official procedures, increase trust, mutual respect and co-operation,” he said.
Under the Friends of the Police project that will run in schools, three pupils will be chosen to work with a group of adults, including representatives from the community police, the schools and a parents’ council. The groups will be overseen by the head of the community police.
In addition one child in every class will also be selected to join the programme, working as part of a second tier of friends.
Participants will undergo training, which will include information about the role of the community police and school security. They will also be given information about specific police priorities and programmes, which will initially include campaigns on the harm caused by drugs and smoking, and raising traffic safety awareness.
The second project, the Meeting of Partners, will have a similar structure, but include representatives from government departments and private companies, as well as people in each residential neighbourhood.
The police said the Partners project aimed to encourage closer co-operation between police and different sectors of society.
People spoken to by The National yesterday welcomed the plans to form stronger relationships through the two new projects.
Faisal Said al Qbaisi, a 28-year-old Emirati, said the community police perform a vital function because most people do not want to involve courts in family disputes. Parents who have trouble with their children prefer to go to the community police.
“They don’t want trouble for their children, they only hope to get their children to sign a commitment statement,” said Mr Qbaisi. He added that many people were not aware of the services provided by the community police and said there should be more awareness campaigns by the police and media.
Zahid Hussain, a taxi driver from Pakistan, said that although he had never been involved in a conflict that was resolved by the community police, he was aware of their existence. “They wear green clothes and settle disputes between taxi drivers,” he said.
Major Amiri said the community police, who deal with minor cases, crimes and complaints, had been working hard for the past year to improve community relations. He said a significant rise in the number of cases dealt with by the unit in 2008 compared with the previous year indicated more people were turning to police for help.
The unit handled twice as many cases last year compared with the previous year. Among the cases dealt with were 2,894 traffic files, compared with 1,668 in 2007; 2,033 social disputes, compared with 550 disputes in 2007; and 6,0958 minor crimes and disorders, compared with 3,626. They undertook 5,449 public services, including awareness campaigns and visits to schools and malls, compared with 2532 in 2007.
Farida al Wohaibi, a 14-year-old fifth grader, said the police participated in a number of celebrations at her school, most recently the National Day. “The police came and sang the national anthem for us, and then met with the students representatives who are usually a student from every class,” she said. There is a social specialist at her school who caters for the needs of students and liasies with authorities, including police, she said.
In November last year, a UN delegation described Abu Dhabi community police as a role model for other countries to follow.