Study finds aggressive driving, disregard for traffic laws cause of accidents in Bahrain

TDT | Manama                    

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com  

Reported by Zahra Ayaz

Aggressive driving, speeding and general disregard for basic traffic laws are the primary causes of the high number of accidents in the Kingdom, according to a new study.

The study also revealed that accidents are distributed evenly among the days of the week. Accordingly, the least-accident day is Friday - the national off day in Bahrain - whereas Wednesdays and Thursdays have, relatively, the highest number of accidents.

Speaking to The Daily Tribune, a Bahrain resident and local commuter, who does not want to be identified, said, “I am really afraid of the vehicles as generally between Wednesday evening and Saturday, Kingdom experiences a large number of visitors from neighbouring countries.

“During this period, traffic increases, making drivers aggressive, drive at incredibly high speeds as well as engaging in various forms of stunts such as drifting and street skating with people hanging on to doors and feet on the ground as the car pelts along at high speed.

“While many of these drivers appear to be very adept, what they are doing is incredibly dangerous and in the middle of traffic, not only risking their own life but also others.”

“Some people also drive aggressively and over speeds, and are mostly alcohol-related accidents during this period. We have to be careful as we can expect extreme driver behaviour that may as well appear to be a combination of suicidal and homicidal, with dashes of ‘trying out for Mad Max’ thrown in,” said Abdul Habeeb, an expatriate and local driver.

“I also believe that women drivers are generally friendly and unhurried; if you see a car driving erratically, it is usually driven by an expat, where such practices are common, or from neighbouring countries.”

Stunts on busy roads

Recently The Daily Tribune reported the arrest of two for roller skating stunts on busy public roads. Police booked the two for driving recklessly on public roads and performing dangerous stunts, clinging onto the vehicle and endangering the lives of others and themselves.

The arrest followed after a video went viral of a man roller skating, learning onto a moving car on a public road in the Kingdom. The incident prompted police to take action. The General Directorate of Traffic said they confiscated the vehicle and arrested the suspects.