Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) and Dubai Police have announced a significant decline in traffic fatalities across the emirate over the past 18 years. In a recent high-level coordination meeting, officials confirmed that road deaths have dropped from 21.7 per 100,000 people in 2007 to just 1.8 per 100,000 people in 2024, a reduction of more than 90%.
The meeting, attended by His Excellency Mattar Al Tayer, Director General, Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors at RTA, and Lieutenant General Abdullah Khalifa Al Marri, Commander-in-Chief of Dubai Police, focused on the progress of the Dubai Traffic Safety Strategy 2022 to 2026.
Key Highlights:
- 53 joint initiatives were implemented by RTA and Dubai Police in 2024 alone, helping meet fatality reduction targets.
- Pedestrian deaths decreased from 9.5 per 100,000 people in 2007 to 0.3 per 100,000 people in 2024.
- Among registered vehicles, serious injuries and death rates dropped from 4.2 per 10,000 vehicles in 2007 to just 0.45 per 10,000 vehicles in 2024.
Both RTA and Dubai Police reaffirmed their commitment to keeping Dubai’s roads among the safest in the world. Their joint strategy remains anchored in a bold vision: Zero Fatalities.
Some of the crucial measures taken by the RTA and Dubai Police to curb road accident rates include traffic awareness campaigns, consistent assessment of risky areas and upgrades to roads and signalised intersections, installation of raised pedestrian crossings and monitoring units to oversee e-scooter and bicycle usage.
During the meeting, RTA also presented its future road safety plans that are to be achieved by 2030. They were structured around four main pillars:
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Road Infrastructure: Upgrading key roads like Hessa Street, Al Meydan, and Trade Centre Roundabout.
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Transport Policy: Expanding bus lanes, toll reforms and flexible work policies.
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Public Transport: Construction of Dubai Metro Blue Line and plans for new transit systems.
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Smart Traffic Systems: Achieving 100% network coverage under Phase 2 of the Intelligent Traffic Systems project, which includes installation of surveillance cameras and other measures.