Driving on the Doha Expressway has become more fraught in the past few days after most traffic radars were removed from the road.
There has been no official comment on why this happened yet.
But commuters have taken note of the change, saying speeding, tailgating and other bad driving practices have become more common since they disappeared.
Today morning all speed radars were missing on 22nd Feb road @dohanews pic.twitter.com/PToz0zIeJv
— قاضي وسيم شهزاد🇵🇰🇵🇸Q̥ḁz̥i̥ W̥ḁs̥e̥e̥m̥ (@Qaziws) August 6, 2016
Can someone plz explain where did Express way speed radars disappear? Bullies are humping people & going 120 kh @MOI_QatarEn @dohanews
— Semsia Mustafa (@semsia2107) August 6, 2016
Previous changes
The expressway opened to traffic in 2010 to help improve connections between north and south Doha.
But congestion has steadily grown on the route, and serious accidents regularly took place there.
Last year, traffic officials began tinkering with the speed limit signage on the Doha expressway, starting with an unannounced overnight change from 100 km/hour to 80 km/hour.
However, officials later said the speed limit on the road actually remained 100 km/hour, despite the new signs.
Variable speed limits
More recently, authorities have discussed introducing variable speed limits on February 22nd Road, the part of the expressway that runs between D-Ring and Al-Shamal roads.
These can be adjusted according to traffic conditions to improve safety, according to a 2015 Ashghal tender document for an “intelligent transportation system” operator.
Variable speed limits can help prevent motorists from being forced to slam on their brakes as they come up behind congestion.
Instead, encouraging drivers to slow down creates a more consistent traffic flow and reduces the risk of rear-end collisions.
Has the removal of the traffic radars affected your commute? Thoughts?
