Drivers have backed the introduction of a 120kph minimum speed limit on a major Abu Dhabi motorway.
Abu Dhabi Police announced this week that the new traffic measures for Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Road will apply to drivers travelling in the first and second lanes from the left.
The maximum speed limit for the route, which links Abu Dhabi and Dubai, will remain at 140kph.
The third lane and the last lane for use by heavy vehicles will not include minimum speed violations, police confirmed.
The rules come into effect this month with fines of Dh400 for travelling below 120kph in designated lanes to be applied from May 1.
“The goal of the low-speed activation is to ensure the safety of drivers, to require slow vehicles to move on the right lanes and to always make way for vehicles with preference coming from behind or from the left,” said General Ahmed Saif Al Muhairi, director of Central Operations Sector at Abu Dhabi Police.
Drivers travelling slowly — particularly in the far-left lane — can often be subject to aggressive tailgating from faster moving vehicles approaching from behind.
Their behaviour can also force motorists travelling at far higher speeds to take evasive action, such as slowing down suddenly and swiftly switching lanes, which can also be hazardous.
Public support for plan
Abu Dhabi Police shared a poll on social media on Friday, asking the public if the scheme would "enhance the safety of road users?".
More than 3,400 people responded to the poll, with 78.5 per cent in favour of the new speed limit.
Twitter users also offered their views in the comments section of the post.
"We benefit greatly from it. Some people walk at 60 and the street speed is 140," wrote one driver.
"People follow the speeds and are surprised by the speed of the one who turns to avoid them or slows down suddenly."
Another said it was important to examine the issue of motorists travelling too slowly on roads.
"We hope that this thing will be addressed, especially since the phenomenon is widespread, which is driving slowly by some well-known drivers."
One driver suggested specific speed limits be introduced for each lane on a motorway.
"In my opinion, each lane must have a specific minimum speed, meaning if the maximum street speed is 140, then the lowest left lane will be 120, and the next lane is 100, and the next lane is 80," he said.
The AA, a UK-based roadside assistance and motoring organisation, highlights the risks of failing to maintain appropriate speeds in a blog post offering guidance to learner drivers.
"To avoid speeding or driving dangerously, you may think it wise to keep at a slow pace well below the speed limit on your test," the post reads.
"Being hesitant and driving too slowly can actually lead you to fail your test, as it can be dangerous. Examiners pass positive drivers, not negative or risk-taking ones. Driving too slowly can also signal that you don’t know what the speed limit is, which the examiner will view as you being unfit to drive."
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Road, named in honour of the Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, opened in November 2016.
The 62-kilometre motorway, built at a cost of Dh2.1 billion, shares traffic with Sheikh Zayed Road to ease congestion between the two cities.
Road safety in the Middle East — in pictures
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Sunday, 10am, ICC Academy, Dubai - UAE v Scotland
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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Is it worth it? We put cheesecake frap to the test.
The verdict from the nutritionists is damning. But does a cheesecake frappuccino taste good enough to merit the indulgence?
My advice is to only go there if you have unusually sweet tooth. I like my puddings, but this was a bit much even for me. The first hit is a winner, but it's downhill, slowly, from there. Each sip is a little less satisfying than the last, and maybe it was just all that sugar, but it isn't long before the rush is replaced by a creeping remorse. And half of the thing is still left.
The caramel version is far superior to the blueberry, too. If someone put a full caramel cheesecake through a liquidiser and scooped out the contents, it would probably taste something like this. Blueberry, on the other hand, has more of an artificial taste. It's like someone has tried to invent this drink in a lab, and while early results were promising, they're still in the testing phase. It isn't terrible, but something isn't quite right either.
So if you want an experience, go for a small, and opt for the caramel. But if you want a cheesecake, it's probably more satisfying, and not quite as unhealthy, to just order the real thing.
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Rating: 4.5/5
