Today's Edition
MAYS IBRAHIM (ABU DHABI)
The Ministry of Interior (MoI) is starting the school year 2025/2026 with a nationwide campaign to promote road safety and secure school commutes.
Students across the UAE will return to class on Monday, August 25.
Under the banner “Safe School Year,” the three-month initiative represents the MoI’s fourth quarterly awareness campaign of 2025. It mainly aims to ensure that every school journey is safe by promoting traffic awareness among students, parents, bus supervisors and drivers.
The campaign involves a combination of social media outreach and collaboration with strategic partners concerned with traffic safety.
It targets all regions across the country, offering content in Arabic, English and Urdu to maximise impact.
The campaign outlines some safety guidelines for various groups, from students to school bus drivers, and campus administrations. Students are encouraged to arrive at their bus stops five minutes early, maintain calm while walking to and from school, and follow the “golden rule” of keeping at least 10 steps away from the path of the bus upon disembarking.
Bus supervisors are tasked with assisting students when boarding and leaving the bus, monitoring behaviour during the ride, and reporting absences to school authorities.
Parents are reminded to accompany their children to the bus stop, be ready to respond to school calls, and ensure a responsible adult is available to receive students at the school gate.
School bus drivers are expected to conduct daily vehicle inspections, ensure that students board and leave safely, guide them to their seats, check their seat belts, and strictly follow traffic regulations.
Schools, meanwhile, should be coordinating safe pick-up and drop-off areas, monitoring bus journeys, and communicating regularly with parents to ensure no child is left unattended.
Traffic Law Enforcement
The campaign also highlights the consequences of violating school transport regulations under the UAE Federal Traffic Law.
Drivers who fail to activate the bus stop signal or ignore traffic instructions face a fine of Dh500 and six black points, while those who fail to stop at school bus signals may incur a fine of Dh100 and 10 black points.
