Driving in UAE especially in the cities like Abu Dhabi and Dubai offer a unique experience as your drive between fascinating desert landscape and the high-rise buildings in ultramodern cities. The roads are wide and signal free with an amazing road network all around the country that is fun to drive on. In fact, UAE’s road network was ranked #1 in 2015 by the World Economic Forum under the Global Competitive Index.
But here is another alarming statistic – the number of accidents per capita in UAE is also among the highest in the world. As huge proportion of the total cars in UAE high-end luxury and sports car, the fast running cars, weather and sometimes lack of knowledge of local driving rules cause unusually high accidents.
If you are planning to travel to Dubai or want to relocate to the hypermodern city, you need to have car insurance before you can drive or own a car here. But even before that, as an expat, you need to learn about the driving laws.
The UAE Driving Laws
In UAE and all other countries in the Middle East, the rule is to drive at the right-hand side of the road. If you are from a country where the rule is to drive at left-hand side, you must exercise caution.
When it comes to the speed limit in Dubai, you can have different signs for different roads that are often changed as the traffic load increases or decreases as new roads are constructed. But on average, the speed limit within the city is 60 km/h while on the highway; the limit is between 100 and 120 km/hour.
Third, as already mentioned, car insurance is mandatory before buying a car. The third party insurance is mandatory by law that covers the damage done to any third person but other options are also available like comprehensive insurance.
You must acquire a UAE issued driving license to own and drive a private car. The UAE traffic police issue black points against traffic violations. If you have received 24 black points, the license will be suspended.
Some traffic violations that can result in black points include using the hard shoulder while driving, eating or drinking while driving, use of sunglasses after sunset, use of mobile phone, and extremely high speed.
To learn more about the driving laws in Dubai, you can also read about the laws on the official website.
