DUBAI The installation of credit and Nol card devices in Dubai’s taxis will be complete by the end of 2015, a top Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) official has confirmed to XPRESS.
The CEO of RTA’s Public Transport Agency, Dr Yousif Al Ali, in February 2014 told XPRESS that their plan was to equip all taxis with the new system by the middle of this year. Tha t will now happen within months, he said last week.
“Currently 80 per cent of the taxi fleet in Dubai are equipped with the Nol/credit card machines and the rest of the fleet will be equipped by the year-end,” said Dr. Al Ali. “As per the project plan, the installations started in January 2015 and the system goes live once they are installed in each taxi, so passengers have the option of paying their bills by cash, Nol or credit card,” he added.
Reports of Dubai taxis incorporating a GPRS-enabled system for payments using Nol, debit and credit cards have been doing the rounds since late 2013, but most taxi drivers XPRESS spoke to say new devices were installed only months ago.
Cabbie-speak
“My vehicle had the new device installed only in May this year but I have heard nothing yet from any official on when will it be functional,” said Hafiz, a long-time cabbie from Peshawar in Pakistan.
Bangladeshi taxi driver Mohammad Maqsoud said: “No one’s installed the device in my vehicle yet, but some of my colleagues have told me that their vehicles have been fitted with the device recently.”