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Article: Need for speed: a novel idea to take Saudi youths off the roads and on to the racetrack is shifting into gear.(MOTOR RACING)
- Article from:
- MEED Middle East Economic Digest
- Article date:
- February 17, 2006
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2006 MEED Middle East Economic Digest. All Rights Reserved. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Most visitors experiencing the kingdom's roads relate tales of fear, woe and panic. The statistics speak for themselves. Every two hours one person dies and four are injured in traffic-related incidents. According to government estimates, more than 550,000 people were either killed or injured in car accidents between 1971 and 1997. The figure is equivalent to about 3.5 per cent of the population. In recent years little has been done to curb excess speeding and blatant traffic violations.
The government is now beginning to consider its options in a bid to make the streets safer. A ban on the use of mobile phones in cars is one proposal currently under ...