Oman welcomes new era of road safety

Muscat: A new era of road safety begins in Oman today as 52 new traffic laws and 13 new penalties issued by a Royal Decree come into effect.
“Today is a defining moment in making the Sultanate’s roads safer, as these regulations aim to ensure the safety of all road users. Traffic law is reborn,” Ali Al Barwani, CEO of the Oman Road Safety Association, said.
Read this: Full list of Oman's new traffic rules and laws in 2018
In preparation for the law’s implementation, the Royal Oman Police (ROP) has been raising public awareness about the different regulations. “For the last three days, we have been raising awareness. For instance, we posted a series of infographics on new traffic violations, and the changes in fines on our social media accounts. In addition, we have been travelling around the Sultanate and informing the various police forces about the regulations,” an ROP official said.
Among the list of various new traffic laws, the one related to child car seats has led to numerous debates among communities.
The amended regulation states that not using a car seat for children under the age of four will be a category four offence, and violators would face a fine that would rise on repeat offence.
“We are looking forward to the introduction of all regulations. We are specifically excited to see the car seat rule and the seat belts for all law finally come into effect,” Al Barwani said.
“We know from studies that just applying these two rules could significantly reduce fatality rates during accidents,” he added.
Hamed, a taxi driver from Jalan, said: “Parents must take responsibility for the safety of their children. They must bring along child seats as taxis do not normally transport young children, and so, should not need to buy and store a seat.”
The Sultanate has been moving in the direction of safer roads for a few years now.
These amendments support the government’s plan. Reintroducing road safety into the lives of people, however, might be difficult. In order to make the Sultanate’s road safer, residents must work with the authorities to properly implement and follow these rules.
“I recently got my licence, and so I feel as though these regulations and the amendments are very important as they clearly state what is allowed and what is not. At the end of the day, this law is about our safety,” Marwa, a resident, said.
In addition, starting today, Omani women will be allowed to operate taxis and trucks in an effort to boost employment prospects for Omanis.
The penalties that saw an increase include parking in a spot meant for the disabled (OMR10 to 50), parking in an ambulance slot (OMR10 to 35), driving with export or import plates after the expiry of the prescribed period (OMR10 to 35), covering the face while driving (OMR15 to 50), and equipment installation to raise engine power and sound (OMR50).
An upgraded points system will also come into effect from today.