Makani will end misuse of disabled spaces

An Abu Dhabi Police car with face-detection capabilities was also among the hi-tech gear at Marina Mall. Jeffrey E Biteng / The National

ABU DHABI // High-tech machines will be installed throughout Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Fujairah to make sure unregistered motorists do not park in spaces for the disabled.

The devices have been in use on a pilot basis in Fujairah since last year, and the Ministry of Interior plans to introduce 40 in Abu Dhabi, 40 in Dubai and 20 more in Fujairah early next year, said Capt Rashed Al Qemzi, who was among a team of police officers at Marina Mall demonstrating the new technology to the public as part of UAE Innovation Week.

“Yes, hopefully in 2016,” Capt Al Qemzi said. “It’s working now in Fujairah, but we’re going to have this open in two months all over the emirates.”

Called Makani, or “my place”, the device is about 10 feet tall and is marked with the universal blue symbol for disabled parking. The concept came from a team of police officers in Fujairah, said Lt Khaled Al Shamsi, who is one of the machine’s inventors.

“Four or five years ago, we used to receive a lot of calls or complaints from handicapped people saying, ‘we want to park our cars, we cannot walk. But we have to walk very far because the spaces are taken’,” Lt Al Shamsi said.

“After getting the complaints, we made this machine to protect the rights of handicapped people. It’s 100 per cent local, made by Fujairah Police.”

The Makani scans the licence plate of each car that pulls into an accessible-parking space, and if it comes back as being a registered permit-holder, a blue light will flash indicating the vehicle is allowed to park in the spot. If the plate is not registered, a red light will flash and an audio warning will let the driver know they have 30 seconds to vacate the space.

“If you move before 30 seconds, you will be safe, but if you are still parked in the space after 30 seconds, you will automatically be fined Dh1,000 and get four black points,” Lt Al Shamsi said.

The ministry is also planning to introduce a smart teller that will allow the public to pay fines, renew their vehicle registration, insurance and driver’s license within minutes.

Capt Al Qemzi said these smart tellers, which were also on display at the mall, might be introduced by early next year.

Other high-tech crime-fighting tools, including a police camera drone, an airport bomb-inspection vehicle and robot, and other cutting-edge gadgets, will be on display at Marina Mall until Saturday evening.