First air-conditioned bus shelter opens

Dubai: The Dubai government is revamping its public transport system to provide a near door-to-door connection through its buses, said a senior official.

"We are spending Dh1 billion to improve our public bus transport system as part of our transport master plan," said Mohammad Obaid Al Mulla, Chief Executive Officer of the Public Transport Agency at the Dubai Roads and Transport Authority (RTA).

Al Mulla told reporters after inaugurating the first air-conditioned bus shelter in the world, that about 1,800 hi-tech buses would be included in the public bus fleet in the next three years while the existing 500 buses would also be gradually replaced.

The buses will include double-deckers and articulated (long) buses with higher passenger capacity. "There will be more routes and more bus stops around the city," he said. There will be more than 1,000 buses operational in Dubai by the end of next year.

He said the new buses will have higher security with cameras and other electronic gadgets to monitor movement of buses and passengers.

To ensure that buses reach on time and observe the timetable, Al Mulla said, the RTA is working on a plan to have priority right of way on some roads (dedicated bus lanes) in congested areas.

"We are working on a plan to integrate the bus service with the Metro and water transport because without doing this, we cannot have an effective public transport system," he said.

"All these steps are being taken to encourage people belonging to all classes to use the public transport system," he said.

Mehdi Ali, Director of the Public Bus Department at the RTA, said the agency would introduce automated fare collection system replacing the existing ticket system.

"We will introduce an electronic card which will be available at vending machines at bus stations, shopping malls, petrol stations and even online," he said.