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In line with Shaikh Mohammad’s Autonomous Transportation Strategy, Dubai aims to become the smartest city in the world with a sustainable economy. Image Credit: YouTube

Dubai: On the opening day of the MENA Transport Congress and Exhibition last Monday, His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, announced the launch of the Dubai Autonomous Transportation Strategy.

To give residents a glimpse of how the autonomous transportation strategy will change the way we commute, the Dubai Future Foundation has released a 55-second video depicting how public transport will evolve by 2030. 

By Wednesday morning, the video gained increasing popularity with as many as 13,000 hits – and counting.

The future with driverless cars

As part of Shaikh Mohammad’s initiative, 25 per cent of all transportation trips in Dubai will be smart and driverless by 2030, which comes as part of Dubai's strategy to become the smartest city in the world with a sustainable economy.

The project, he said, will be a joint venture between the Roads and Transport Authority and Dubai Future Foundation, with a strategy focusing on four pillars: Individuals, Technology, Policies and Legislations and Infrastructure.

“It will be the first project of the foundation to build a model of a futuristic city,” Shaikh Mohammad tweeted.

Countries that are currently testing autonomous cars on public roads include:

United Kingdom

France

Switzerland

Four U.S. states, (Nevada, Florida, California, and Michigan), in addition to the District of Columbia, have passed laws to address autonomous vehicles