Dubai: Trams are washed twice a week on average, using 15 cubic metres of water per wash, with 70 per cent of it recycled.
Gulf News was given a peek into the behind-the-scenes maintenance activities that keep the trams in perfect condition.
“Trams are washed twice a week but sometimes when the weather is dusty and the trams get dirty we wash them immediately as they arrive in the depot. Around 15 cubic metres of water is used to wash a tram and about 11 cubic metres of the water is recycled and reused,” said Mohammad Al Ameeri, Deputy Director and Manager of Rolling Stock Maintenance section at RTA’s Rail Maintenance Department.
He added that the depot is equipped with a water treatment facility that treats more than 70 per cent of the water used for washing.
The depot is equipped with the latest technology and equipment required to maintain the trams.
“We have all the specialised machinery to keep trams in the best condition as well as for maintaining the tracks. We do routine as well as periodic maintenance for all 11 trams and we have the capacity to cater to more trams should it be required,” he added.
Taking Gulf News through the routine process of maintenance, he said: “The trains arrive at a stabling area, where they are parked. We carry out cleaning there. Early morning we send the trams to service, depending on how many trams are required from the operations side. We get the schedules from the operations side and, depending on that, we send the number of trains required for servicing.”
The routine maintenance activities take place between 7am and 5pm, but if there is any emergency or any urgent requirement then the service is done even beyond these hours.
“We have a planned maintenance schedule and we know which tram will come for maintenance on which day and at what time. Trams go through routine service every 15 days when the inspection is done along with cleaning air condition filters, checking readings from various systems as well as visual inspection for any damages,” said Al Ameeri.
Period maintenance is done every three months, six months, nine months and 12 months, which covers oil change, transmission check up, wheel profiling as well as other important activities.
“The trams are under warranty for three years and the warranty covers everything except for accidents or other damage caused in operations,” he said.
The trams go through four levels of maintenance, with different teams working the tram simultaneously.
“We have four teams of engineers working on the tram at the same time, one team carries out maintenance underneath, the second team works on top, the third team inside and the fourth team on the sides,” he added.
Another interesting activity the depot carries out is the sanding of the tram wheels, where a special type of sand is used to maintain the braking system and ensure there is no oil or any other slippery material on the wheels.
