Dubai’s RTA is launching new traffic safety initiatives, smart signboards, and student awareness programmes for the 2025–26 school year.
DUBAI: The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has unveiled a wide-ranging back-to-school plan for the 2025–2026 academic year, designed to strengthen road safety for students, drivers, and parents. The initiative supports the Ministry of Interior’s nationwide awareness campaign themed “Traffic Safety for School Students.”
RTA will reactivate a series of interactive programmes aimed at different age groups, including the “Golden Rules for Generations’ Safety” for middle school students, “Hello, My School” for kindergarten and primary pupils, and a “Virtual Driving Licence” programme for high schoolers. At the start of term, students will also receive educational gifts featuring QR codes linked to digital safety instructions, while parents will be given awareness packs highlighting safe practices during school drop-offs and pick-ups.
Hussain Al Banna, CEO of RTA’s Traffic and Roads Agency, confirmed that the number of students in Dubai schools is expected to reach 400,000 this year, across more than 230 institutions representing 185 nationalities. He emphasised that the diversity of the student population requires effective solutions to ensure safety, noting that Dubai has recorded zero school zone traffic fatalities since 2010 thanks to continuous awareness and safety efforts.
Among the new initiatives, RTA is expanding its network of electronic signboards near schools to monitor and display vehicle speeds. The authority is also working with Dubai Police, the Knowledge and Human Development Authority, and Emirates Schools Establishment to spread traffic safety messages through social media, outdoor advertising, and school events.
The plan builds on RTA’s School Zones Project, which introduced reduced speed limits, traffic-calming measures, smart signboards, red road markings, and safe pedestrian crossings near schools. Al Banna urged parents and drivers to remain vigilant, use designated pick-up and drop-off points, avoid blocking emergency zones, and strictly obey school bus signals.
These measures form part of RTA’s broader mission to provide a safe learning environment and protect children across the city. By combining education, enforcement, and technology, the authority aims to ensure that Dubai schools continue their record of accident-free zones in the new academic year.
