By Faten Omar

A national campaign was launched recently to educate people about the dangers of stopping in the yellow box at traffic junctions. The awareness campaign was launched by the Local Flavor marketing agency, to highlight violations by drivers of the 'Yellow box' rule, which represents just one of the many traffic offenses that continue to irritate planners and road users.

Ahmad Sultan

Speaking to Kuwait Times, Ahmad Sultan, Head of Marketing at Local Flavor, said that citizens and residents should be part of the solution, adding that, "The driver should not enter the intersection area in the event of a traffic congestion, even if the signal is green and he has priority to cross to avoid traffic disruption and traffic accidents."

Sultan said that the driver is allowed to enter the intersection area if the path is clear, explaining "The yellow box is the common intersection area at traffic lights and it helps ensure the smooth flow of traffic in all directions. Entering it in the event of traffic congestion leads to obstruction of traffic and can cause accidents. This is a violation punishable by law according to Article 34 of the Kuwaiti Traffic Law and this applies to all intersections."

Regarding the importance of the yellow box, he noted, "It contributes to the smooth flow of traffic at intersections in all directions and reduces traffic jams. Entering the yellow box in the event of traffic congestion leads to a violation that carries a penalty of imprisonment for a period not exceeding one month and a fine of no more than KD 75 or either of these two penalties."

Earlier, Khaled Al-Sayer, managing partner at Local Flavor, affirmed that the Yellow Box campaign aims to reduce traffic congestion, especially during peak times. He added, "The campaign contributes to a smooth flow of traffic in all directions and reduces road closures resulting from congestion, in addition, to educating the community about the importance of the yellow box to reduce traffic jams and help reduce accidents at traffic lights."

Sayer noted that the campaign is targeting all citizens and residents of all groups. He indicated that it will contribute to also changing road behaviors and ethics, in addition to establishing the principle of equality as guaranteed by law.

Meanwhile, Sheikh Abdulaziz Al-Sabah, Assistant Undersecretary for the Maintenance Engineering Sector at the Ministry of Public Works, revealed that the ministry is doing its best to reduce traffic congestion, adding that it will provide all forms of support to the campaign by providing the necessary paints and participating in painting 24 yellow box intersections in six different governorates, done in coordination with the General Directorate of Traffic in the Ministry of Interior.

Yellow box junctions keep the junction clear for traffic to avoid traffic jams. Its junctions are indicated by yellow lines painted in the form of a box on the road. They are usually found at the junction of two or more roads and occasionally at roundabouts or outside fire and ambulance stations.