Campaigners call for riders to focus on safety over fast food deliveries as deadlines tighten

Delivery riders in the UAE are so focused on reaching customers on time that they often prioritise speed over safety, experts say.

Sharjah Police reported more than 30,000 fines for motorcycles, delivery bikes, buses and heavy vehicles since regulations, passed in November, banned them from using fast lanes or face a Dh500 fine. Penalties can rise to Dh700 for a second offence.

Dubai Police also hope to improve safety as traffic levels continue to soar along with the demand for home deliveries. Under new regulations, delivery riders will be banned from using the two far-left lanes on roads with five lanes or more and from using the farthest left lane on roads with three or four lanes.

But experts said pressure on riders by delivery companies to meet shorter waiting times for consumers is at the heart of the matter, contributing to unsafe riding and frequent traffic offences.

“These aggregator brands and fleet operators are focusing on short delivery time, rather than on rider well-being. Delivery riders doing all kind of stunts, taking U-turns from non-authorised areas, using the hard shoulder and walkways in order to deliver on time,” Thomas Edelmann, founder and managing director of Road SafetyUAE, told The National.

“There is disrespect to the rules. They only think about delivery times because the aggregator brands are telling them to do so.”

Mr Edelmann said there is a huge amount of pressure on riders to do everything to satisfy demand.