DUBAI: A ban on vehicles more than 20 years old in the United Arab Emirates, scheduled to begin yesterday, has been shelved until further notice, local media reported.
The ministerial decision aimed at taking cars manufactured before 1988 out of circulation was suspended by the president, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahyan, newspapers reported.
Interior Minister Sheikh Saif bin Zayed al-Nahyan said the ban has been postponed to give enough time for low-income people who own such vehicles to get rid of them.
It was not clear if the law’s suspension was prompted by heightening fears about the impact of the global financial crisis on the UAE’s economy, as major companies started laying off employees and banks tightened credit facilities.
The initial decision aimed to free the UAE’s roads of all vehicles more than 15 years old by 2010, reducing congestion and pollution.
Sharjah, one of seven emirates that make up the UAE, has also decided to ban workers in jobs considered menial from driving, a local daily reported yesterday.
On Sunday it reported that the ban applied to the whole country, but yesterday quoted police as saying the decision applied only to Sharjah, home to many foreign workers.
People in some 86 occupations, among them watchmen, typists, cooks, carpenters, housemaids and gardeners, will no longer be able to apply for driving licences in the emirate.
The decision is aimed at cutting congestion, despite public transport in the UAE remaining inadequate.
Some 1.85mn cars are registered across the UAE, putting it among nations with the highest per capita car ownership, the report said, adding that booming Dubai has a ratio of 541 cars per 1,000 people.
Expatriates in the UAE number 4.7mn, more than 84% of the 5.6mn population. – AFP |
