The General Traffic Department stated that the goal of Gulf Traffic Week is to raise traffic awareness and achieve discipline on the road, not to issue traffic violations, according to Brigadier General Nawaf Al-Hayyan, Chairman of the Unified Gulf Traffic Week Activities Committee.

Start He made this revelation yesterday morning at a press conference for the Unified Gulf Traffic Week launch, which was held under the theme “Driving Without a Phone” in the Operations Room building in South Sabahiya. Major General Yousef Al-Khadda, the assistant undersecretary for traffic affairs, and other senior officials from the General Traffic Department were also present.

According to Brigadier General Al-Hayyan, since parking in handicapped parking lots falls under the purview of the General Department of Investigations, “blocks” will be opened during Traffic Week for all closed infractions in Khairan Mall and the Avenues Mall. After paying the appropriate fine, any owner of an impounded car can get their vehicle released. About 650,000 traffic tickets have been issued since the “Rasid” program went live on September 1st of last year. However, it has made it simpler for the offender to obtain complete information about the infraction promptly. A person may file a grievance through the Sahel app or any of the infractions sections of the traffic departments if certain violations are committed repeatedly at the same time and location.

The Violations Investigation Department has officers that confirm the recurrence of infractions. The repeated violation is reserved if the repetition is demonstrated. Additionally, according to a letter from the Public Authority for the Disabled Affairs (PADA), there is a connection between the General Traffic Department, PADA, and all state institutions, allowing for the suspension of a person with a visual disability’s driver’s license. This also holds true for other state-run facilities like the Psychiatric Hospital.

In reference to the process by which foreign nationals might have their licenses revoked, Brigadier General Al-Hayyan said that any foreign national who changes careers will have their profession-based driver’s license revoked and will need to reapply for a new one. He expressed his hope that the members of the next National Assembly would talk about passing the new traffic law, noting that stiffer fines for infractions will help to lower the number of serious traffic accidents.

After going over the traffic data for 2023, Brigadier General Al-Hayyan clarified that there are 4,824 thousand people living in Kuwait. 1,951,495 permits to drive have been issued by the General Traffic Department. There are 2,546,798 automobiles total. There are 1,751,203 private licenses and 152,779 general licenses, in that order. A total of 1,900,735 driving licenses have been awarded to citizens, 876,432 to residents, and 65,240 to non-Kuwaitis.

There were 16,299 licenses in the construction industry. 31,284 licenses for two-wheelers, including 11,992 licenses for delivery motorbikes, are in existence. The number of infractions for going over the speed limit is 4,294,446; for running red lights, it is 853,220; for not using a seat belt while driving, it is 370,120; for using a phone while driving, it is 185,816); for loud exhaust noises, it is 102,816); for infractions pertaining to road safety, it is 49,380; for driving while distracted, it is 21,897; for reckless driving, it is 8,540; and for racing on public roads, there are 892 infractions. A total of 9,120,000 infractions were reported, consisting of 3,142,923 direct violations and 5,977,83 indirect violations. 10,460 vehicles had been impounded, and 155 people had been deported.

Out of the individuals detained due to traffic-related offenses, 3,698 were reported to the traffic police, 314 to the traffic court, and 80 infractions were found to have occurred. In 2023, there were 74,870 traffic accidents, comprising 2,132 car overturns, 985 run-over incidents, and 296 fatal accidents. According to Brigadier General Al-Hayyan, all of the Gulf Cooperation Council’s member nations will eventually be connected to the infractions, which have already been connected to the State of Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. He said that there had been a 95% drop in the number of eye-related injuries reported at the Ministry of Health hospitals’ ophthalmology departments over the national holidays, from 331 instances to 14 cases this year.