Dubai: Thousands of residents, who normally use their private vehicles, chose public transportation Tuesday as the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) celebrated Public Transport Day.
Tuesday was the second edition of the Public Transport Day initiative, which commemorates the establishment of RTA, six years ago.
Held under the theme, Together We Move, all Nol card users enjoyed free rides on the metro, public buses and water bus for the day.
"We are very happy seeing the huge turnout. The support from the public shows that with constant efforts we will be able to popularise the culture of using public transport regularly," Hussain Mohammad Al Banna, Director of Traffic Department at the RTA, told Gulf News yesterday evening at the packed Union Station.
The cultural events were crowd pullers, Al Banna added.
Meanwhile, two new Bus and Taxi Dedicated Lanes — including a one kilometre-long stretch of Naif Road from Al Musalla Road to Al Khaleej Road, and one kilometre of Al Ittihad Road in the direction from Sharjah to Dubai from the entry point of Dubai Emirate up to Al Nahda Interchange — were opened to traffic yesterday.
Mattar Al Tayer, Chairman of the Board and Executive Director of the RTA, said the transit times on the roads were slashed by half with the opening of these lanes.
"The operational cost of buses dropped by Dh10.4 million per month while the annual savings made in the passengers' time was in the order of Dh104 million."
The celebrations kicked off at the Al Gubaiba Metro station in Bur Dubai and the Union Station in Deira from 5 pm to 9 pm. It included heritage and folklore events (bazaar) in the open area in front of the stations, featuring participation of school students, foreign community clubs, presenters and artists
Connectivity
Okamoto Katsunori, an associate professor of geography from Japan, on a week-long visit here, said that he is highly impressed with the Dubai Metro. "The best thing I liked is the connectivity with other modes of transport once you get off the metro."
Maitha Al Qubaisi, an Emirati student, said that it was her first time on the metro. "I loved it. Honestly, I didn't think it would get me to my destination so quickly."
She said that although she is addicted to her four-wheel drive, she will consider riding the metro more often. "I think I will use it if I need to get to one place and come back. But it is unlikely I will use it if I need to stop at several places during my trip," she said.
The event witnessed wide participation from government entities, educational institutions and private businesses which urged its employees to use mass transit modes, RTA said.
The American University in Dubai, for instance, closed the car park and urged students to use the metro, especially because the metro station is adjacent to the entrance of the university.
Seventeen-year-old Samira Ghulam Mustafa, from Pakistan, took the metro today with her family and her friends. "It is very nice to use the metro because it is very convenient."
Marina Varbenaova, from Russia, took her 10-year-old son Daniel on the metro for the first time today. "I have used it few times, and I wanted him to try it too. The service is excellent."
Margaret Aguilar, a Filipina, who is currently on the lookout for a job said that the metro is a boon to those in the city who don't own a car of their own. "I use it every day. Its timely and very easy on the pocket as compared to the cabs," she said.
Muneeba Abdullah, a regular commuter, said that she knows a lot of people who just believe it is inconvenient because they have never tried it.
People should try it out at least once before making a judgment, she said, adding that she has found it to be very hassle-free.
