Under the new plans, which transport chiefs say will help to improve road safety in the city, learner drivers will have to undergo theoretical testing and will have to complete a driver's handbook on road safety as well as the normal driving test under proposals by the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA).

Drivers in Dubai who do not hold international licences that can be converted to UAE licences over the counter will only be licensed to drive for an initial one year with licences being renewed only if motorists keep clean driving records.

Thirty percent of respondents applauded the RTA's initiative, saying they believed it would lead to more reckless motorists being kept off the roads.

But conversely, another 40 percent criticised RTA officials for not doing something earlier. They thought the new restrictions were too little, too late.

The changes are included as part of a comprehensive RTA training programme for driving instructors and examiners to ready them for the changes to the system.

Director of the Driver Licensing Department confirmed that this transition training is considered a prerequisite to make changes in the driver training and licensing system and is expected to last for 34 weeks.

In our poll, 15 percent of respondents welcomed the changes and said they would bring some benefits to Dubai's motorists who daily run the gauntlet of aggressive and dangerous drivers.

A further 16 percent of people who voted called for the new one-year restrictions to be imposed on some drivers to be extended to all motorists, irrelevant of nationality.