23 September 2016
JEDDAH: Every year during celebrations on the National Day, Saudi youths change the colors of their cars to green, decorate them with accessories such as the king's picture, National Day stickers, and spray paint, and honk their horns and pack the roads. These create problems for other road users.

Taking this into consideration, the Traffic Department has set up rules for this year's National Day to avoid problems which occurred in previous years. Citizens and residents of the country applauded this announcement as a decent way to avoid creating problems for others.

The Saudi Traffic Department set up rules for National Day including that drivers should not change the color of their vehicles; affix pictures of the king and posters on their cars; use spray paint and other decoration; and no motorist should gather on any spot and block the road. Any disturbance or hindrance to traffic flow will be considered a violation of the law.

Violation of these regulations will result in confiscation of the vehicle, suspension of the driver's license, and a fine of between SR300 and SR500. Violation points will also be added to the motorist's record. Traffic police will monitor all roads to stop violations.

Citizen Mohammed Al-Hawai said all citizens and residents of the Kingdom should respect the rules by the Traffic Department and help them as whatever they are doing is for safety and security; they are sacrificing their National Day holiday by standing on streets and monitoring traffic so all will stay safe and secure.

Another citizen, Mohammed Saeed, said celebrating National Day is a pledge to show solidarity with the country and its leadership by following the rules and regulations of the country and respecting the law. It doesn't mean creating problems for others or traffic jams on the roads.

He also said that whatever rules the Traffic Department introduced "are for our safety and security, so everyone should follow and respect them."

Mohammed Ali, a resident of Jeddah, said it's good that the Traffic Department has set out rules for the celebration of National Day, as sometimes emergency ambulances and other security vehicles have a hard time reaching their destinations, which can sometime be a matter of life and death.

Another citizen, Mohammed Abdul Sattar, said the way the youths celebrate National Day in a rowdy manner gives a very bad name to the Kingdom. Celebrating and loving the motherland is very important, but it should be done in a civilized manner.

"The Traffic Department's new rules will serve the purpose. However, It's the right of Saudi youths to be happy and merry in celebrating their country's national day, for that, maybe the municipality should think of making a special area in the cities where these youths can have fun with their cars without jeopardizing traffic," he said.

© Arab News 2016