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Dubai: Five people were killed and more than 1,600 traffic accidents were reported during the Eid Al Adha holidays.
Dubai Police's Traffic Department reported about accidents that took place between Friday and Monday. According to reports from police stations, most accidents were due to speeding and not paying attention to the road, not leaving enough space between vehicles and not abiding by traffic rules and guidelines.
On Tuesday, police quoting the Dubai Police's Command and Control Department said 3,500 accidents were reported during the Eid Al Adha holidays. However, they withdrew the figure later during the day saying it was not the accurate number of accidents. They said the 3,500 figure was probably accident reports [people calling in to inform the operations department of accidents], but that number could have been inaccurate as well.
According to recent statistics, there were approximately 283 traffic deaths from the beginning of last year until December 14. In the 11 months of last year, 257 people were killed in traffic accidents, compared to 236 in 2005.
April and October reported the highest number of traffic deaths with 28 deaths for each month, while Nov-ember reported the lowest number of traffic deaths. The two most dangerous roads in the 11 months of last year were Shaikh Zayed Road and Emirates Ring Road with 30 deaths on each road.
According to the Roads and Transports Authority (RTA), the number of registered vehicles in Dubai had crossed 700,000 last year, recording about 12 per cent increase over the 2005 figure of 630,000 vehicles.
Police called on motorists to abide by traffic laws and speed limits, pay attention while driving, reduce speed during bad weather and rain and leave enough space between vehicles to avoid accidents.
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