DUBAI 14 October 2018: Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has achieved a Guinness World Record by compiling the biggest awareness message using Lego Blocks.
Maitha bin Adai, CEO of RTA’s Traffic and Roads Agency received a certificate to this effect from the office of Guinness Records Book at the site of the event in Dubai Festival City.
Maitha participated with students and shoppers in placing Lego Blocks in the plaque reflecting the awareness message: ‘Your Life is worth more than a phone call.’
“The underlying objective of this achievement is to send a loud and clear awareness message to motorists cautioning them against the risks of using of using phones while driving. Traffic studies indicate that the probability of traffic accidents where motorists are using mobile phones while driving is four times higher than those not using it,” said Maitha.
Zero Fatality Target
This event contributes to achieving RTA’s KPI in traffic safety and (0) fatality per 100,000 of the population. During the period 2008-2015, we have managed to reduce the fatality rate of traffic accidents by as much as 82%. The rate receded by 22% during 2015-2017.
Overall, the traffic fatality rate dipped from 21.7 cases per 100,000 of the population in 2007 to 2.5 cases per 100,000 of the population last year (2017).
“The use of mobile phone during driving is equivalent to driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs. The response of motorists using mobile phone is delayed by 50% compared to the response of drivers not using phones while driving,” explained Maitha.
The awareness message “Your Life worth more than a phone call” reflects in short and strong words the risks of using the mobile phone to the life of the driver as well as road users. More than 20,000 Lego Blocks were used to write the awareness message in both Arabic and English. About 140,000 Lego Blocks were used to make the plaque at the site of the event.