Dubai: The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has confirmed that all buses with seating capacity of more than 14 passengers are banned from entering the Airport Tunnel.
Gulf News reported the matter on Wednesday, after receiving complaints from parents regarding the delay in their children reaching home. School buses had to avoid the Airport Tunnel since last week, forcing them to take longer routes, after RTA installed a signboard banning buses from entering the tunnel.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, RTA said: “All categories of buses except RTA buses and other light buses (14-seater minibuses) are not allowed in the Airport Tunnel effective from Sunday February 14, 2016.”
The statement said that the decision was taken based on studies to address issues like congestion along roads leading to the Airport Tunnel, air quality issues inside the tunnel due to high number of large vehicles in the tunnel and potential implications of any major accidents inside the tunnel due to its proximity to the airport, as well as being right under the airport runway.
RTA urged bus operators to use alternative routes such as Ittihad Road, Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Road, Algeria Road and Academic City Road.