Speed camera is becoming a ‘social burden'

Slowing down and using hazard lights are methods Saudi youths use to warn other motorists that Saher cameras are near. Local Arabic daily Al-Watan reported that Saudi youths who are fed up with the Saher cameras consider the system a new social burden instead of a way to prevent speeding and save lives. Motorists of all nationalities are no longer worried by these warning signals, but welcome them to avoid being tracked down by the Saher system. In the past, when motorists saw headlights from other vehicles being flashed and hazard lights used, they would suspect that a police inspection post was near, there was a traffic accident ahead or some road works to be avoided. Now, these signals tell them that a car with a Saher camera is parked very near. Drivers are now coordinating with each other to avoid Saher cameras. The newspaper quoted Bandar Al-Salman, a Saudi citizen, as saying that this type of cooperation among drivers was especially prominent on expressways and inter-city roads. “When I saw the warning signals for the first time, I thought there was a traffic accident ahead. I slowed down only to see a Saher car parked on the other side of the road,” he said. Abdullah bin Khisaif Al-Qarni, another citizen, said he was traveling from Jeddah to Abha when he came near the Al-Darb area and noticed many cars flashing their headlights. He said he also slowed down fearing an accident ahead and then saw a Saher car on the other side of the road. “This is a good way to avoid Saher tickets,” he said. Al-Qarni said signals used by motorists to help other drivers avoid Saher cameras had become a subject of talk among youths in their social gatherings. Fahd bin Massad Al-Harithy agreed with his two compatriots. He said he considered it a duty now to warn other drivers whenever he came near a Saher car.