Dubai taxi fares revised

Dubai: The flag down rates of taxis in Dubai will increase from Dh3 to Dh5 from December 1, the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has announced.

RTA has also revised the basic charges for booking taxis, with non-peak hour bookings costing Dh8, up from Dh6, and peak hour bookings will cost Dh12, up from Dh10.

Dr Yousuf Ali, CEO of RTA’s Public Transport Agency, said that the rates are being revised to improve the services and will be applicable to all taxi franchises in Dubai.

“The modification of flag down rates was intended to leverage the service on offer to the public by deploying as many taxis as possible and ensuring that the service reaches customers in a timely manner, especially during morning and evening peak hours,” said Al Ali.

However, he said the taxi meter tariff has not been changed.

“The meters will continue to run at the same rate, which is Dh1.71 per kilometre, so the revision will not have any measure impact on commuters,” he added.

From Saturday to Wednesday the peak hours are set from 7am to 10am, and 4pm to 8pm.

On Thursdays and Fridays the evening peak hours are set from 4pm to 12 midnight.

As part of the taxi service upgrade, he said, the taxi fleet is being integrated with the Nol network and cash-less travel on taxis will be possible soon.

“Payment of taxi fares through Nol and credit card is already live on airport taxis, while a significant number of regular taxis have also been upgraded,” he said.

He added that taxi meters are being upgraded gradually and by mid-2015 commuters will have an option of paying through Nol and credit cards on all taxis.

The revision of taxis fares comes close on the heels of changes to public transport fares as well as restructuring of the Nol packages, which became active from November 11 when the Dubai Tram was launched.

“This decision is taken after the RTA commissioned a number of field studies and surveys and benchmarking with a number of the world’s most developed cities, including taxis transport sector. The step is intended to overcome challenges that cabbies face during daily operations, stamp out all problems impeding the delivery of better services to the public and taxi users, and implement the best practices of the industry,” added Al Ali.

He pointed out that taxi fares in Dubai are the cheapest when compared to other major cities in the world such as London, New York, Amsterdam, Paris, Singapore and Tokyo.

Regular taxi

Basic fare - Dh5

Ordered taxi

Basic fare - Dh8 (non-peak hours)

Dh12 (peak hours)