Dubai: This year’s Car-Free Day has been extended to cover the entire week rather than a single day to encourage government and private organisations to participate in reducing carbon emissions and traffic congestion, Dubai Municipality announced on Sunday.
The seventh edition of Car-Free Day will be held on February 21. However, other entities such as Jebel Ali Free Zone, will hold theirs on different days of the week.
“The challenge is in reducing the number of cars on the roads, which means we want to reduce the number of emissions, heat and electricity used,” Hussain Nasser Lootah, director-general of Dubai Municipality, said.
Speaking at a press conference, Lootah said that the initiative aims to target as many as 1,000 organisations, from 300 in 2015, “and while individuals may see it as a small change, collectively it can cause a big effect.”
Since the initiative was launched in 2010, the municipality has recorded a reduction of an estimated 140 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions, which reflects the increased level of awareness and participation by community members.
Eng Alia Al Harmoudi confirmed that Dubai Municipality has recently installed several instruments to measure the concentration of air quality and noise levels in different areas of the emirate, to monitor the environmental changes resulting from the initiative. For example, residents in the last six years saved as much as 147,000 litres of fuel through participating in the previous editions of Car-Free Day.
According to Dubai Municipality, the initiative directly contributes to achieving the objectives of the National Agenda 2021 in the field of preservation of air quality and reduction of the carbon footprint, as well as the objectives of Expo 2020, which is based primarily on the concept of sustainability and promotion of a sustainable transport system for the emirate.
One vehicle emits approximately 140 kilograms of carbon dioxide into the air from a single fuel full tank size of 60 litres, while the total amount of emissions of carbon dioxide emitted from one vehicle per year is about four tonnes.
How to register
Residents and organisations can register for Car Free Day at www.dm.gov.ae. Any inquiries about Car-Free Day can be directed to Dubai Municipality at www.carfreeday@dm.gov.ae.
