DTC, Etihad Rail team up to integrate taxi-rail mobility

Dubai: Dubai Taxi Company (DTC) and Etihad Rail have signed a memorandum of understanding to jointly deliver integrated mobility services for rail passengers, in a push to unify rail and road transit ahead of Etihad Rail’s passenger operations in 2026.

The MoU was inked by Mansoor Rahma Alfalasi, Chief Executive Officer of DTC, and Azza Alsuwaidi, Deputy CEO of Etihad Rail Mobility, at the Global Rail Transport Infrastructure Conference in Abu Dhabi. Under the agreement, DTC will serve as a mobility provider at Etihad Rail stations in Dubai.

DTC will manage taxi, limousine, and VIP vehicle dispatch at station hubs, plan for events, coordinate congestion management, and explore traffic simulations and advanced control systems. It will also bring its fleet, meeting Road and Transport Authority standards and run by regionally experienced drivers, to support “a seamless travel experience,” the MoU states. Through its partnership with Bolt, DTC will enable bookings via the Bolt app for taxis and limousines, providing end-to-end mobility through a single channel.

DTC currently commands about 45% of Dubai’s taxi market share, operating over 6,200 taxis and a fleet of more than 600 premium limousines. In Q1 2025, DTC executed approximately 13 million trips, generating Dh588.3 million in revenue, a 5% year-over-year increase, despite pressure from promotional discounts during the launch of its Bolt service. The company’s full-year 2024 results showed revenue increased by 12% to Dh2.20 billion and EBITDA growth of 19%.

Etihad Rail is preparing to launch passenger train operations in 2026, connecting across the UAE’s seven emirates. The new network is expected to cut travel times significantly, for example, journeys between Abu Dhabi and Dubai could shrink to under an hour.