Dubai: Residents of Dubai Marina and Al Sufouh areas can’t wait for the Dubai Tram to begin operations; more than being eager to take a ride, they want relief from the din of construction.
Work on the 10.6km network, which circles Dubai Marina and Jumeirah Beach Residence after heading from Dubai Police Academy and stretching all along Al Sufouh road, began four years ago.
Dubai’s latest public transport system, served by 11 trams and the same number of stations, goes live on November 11.
Trial runs on the tram began in January this year and have been going on ever since. However, with just a month to go for the public service to begin, the frequency of the trials has increased with trams running every 10 minutes through out the day.
As with every major infrastructure project, the residents are obviously feeling the pains of growth.
“The fact that all this humdrum is going to end in a month gives a lot of relief. We understand all these troubles and traffic problems that we have gone through are part of a growth phase that every city goes through and I m happy it will end soon,” Sabir Ali, a resident of Dubai Marina, said.
Needless to say, areas covered by the tram have been hit by traffic snarls over the last couple of years, which the residents have gotten used to. But, what concerns the motorists as well as pedestrians is the impact the trams could have on traffic once the service begins.
“The tram trials have been more frequent last few days but it runs very slowly when approaching an intersection or a crossing and it seems quite safe but I don’t know how the traffic will be affected once the trams go live as it will run more frequently,” Mark, a JBR resident, said.
Another issue that concerns the residents is the new sign boards associated with trams.
“I have seen the trams running everyday over the past few months and I m still not very confident driving along. I m not too aware of the rules and I think I will need to learn all the signs soon to be comfortable,” said Firas Ahmad, a student at Knowledge Village, which is served by Dubai Tram.
The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has introduced new tram related road signs and rules into the driving curriculum for new drivers, while taxis drivers across all franchises have also started to receive special training for driving around the Dubai Tram.
