Although the most dangerous stretch of the single-lane Dibba-Masafi Road, known locally as the "death road", is scheduled to become a two-lane road, it will not reduce the number of accidents, local residents said.
A 7.5-km section of the 39-km road will become two lanes at a cost of Dh12.2 million.
Residents of Dibba Al Fujairah said the Ministry of Public Works and Housing's new project is worthless unless the entire road is included in the plan.
Building a two-lane road on only a small stretch will not stop the number of fatal accidents on this winding road, critics said.
Work on the proposed 7.5-km section has not started, even though the ministry announced the project several months ago.
Saeed Rashid Khalifa Al Khateebi, a national living in Dibba and working in Fujairah, told Gulf News building an alternate road would be the most effective solution to help reduce the number of accidents.
"I was surprised by the ministry's decision to construct a two-lane road on only 7.5 km out of the 39-km road. Why not replace the whole road? Is there a lack of money in the budget? This project will not help reduce the number of fatal accidents because most of the dangerous twists and turns will still be there," Al Khateebi said.
The project will include the construction of a 7.5-km, two-lane road starting from the first roundabout in Dibba Al Fujairah heading towards the cement factory. Concrete barriers on both sides of the remaining stretch as well as streetlights will be erected.
Al Khateebi said the road is dangerous, especially for young people who speed.
"It is a vital road that is used daily by thousands of Dibba residents who work in Dubai or Abu Dhabi in addition to an increasing number of Arab families, visitors and tourists to Dibba," he said.
Call to replace road
Salem Ahmad Salem, another national from Dibba, blamed the ministry for not replacing the entire stretch with a two-lane road just like the almost-completed road between Dibba and Al Tawiyeen.
"Every resident in Dibba was astonished by the recent ministry decision to replace only 7.5 km of the Dibba-Masafi Road," Salem said.
He claimed that motorists will continue to be killed on the road unless the whole stretch is replaced, even if it means breaking up parts of the surrounding mountains or digging tunnels.
"Driving on this road at night is like trying to commit suicide because the road is not lit, has only one lane in each direction, and has many dangerous turns and ups and downs that take motorists by surprise," Salem said.
"Although the Dibba-Masafi Road issue was discussed several times by the Federal National Council, there appears to be no effective solution in the near future," he said.
On certain stretches, motorists are unable to see vehicles coming from the opposite direction. Concrete barriers installed at some dangerous points in the road have not helped reduce the number of accidents because most of them occur when motorists try to overtake another vehicle.
Mattar Saleh Al Kaabi, director of Dibba Al Fujairah Municipality, renewed his call to replace the entire road, which was convenient for residents when it was built more than 25 years ago, at a time when there were fewer cars.
"The road still has no lighting. It is a narrow, single lane, and accidents usually occur when motorists try to overtake. A motorist can barely drive for one kilometre before encountering a sudden bend," Al Kaabi said.
Danger lurks around the bends
- More than 45,000 people live in Dibba Al Fujairah, Dibba Al Hoson and Dibba Al Beyah.
- The 39-km Dibba-Masafi Road was built in the 1970s.
- In 2001, the Ministry of Public Works and Housing conducted a Dh50 million renovation project on the road after receiving hundreds of complaints from residents and local authorities.
- The road is full of dangerous twists and turns and has no illumination.
- From 1998 to 2003, more than 80 people were killed on the road.
- Last year, 37 traffic accidents occurred on this road, resulting in the deaths of 20 nationals ages 20 to 30. There were also 17 injuries.
Gulf News
