Dubai: Waiting time for taxis booked through the Roads and Transport Authority’s (RTA) dispatch centre will be reduced considerably as the authority launches a new fleet of taxis dedicated for the booking service.
Hala Taxi, a batch of 155 cabs, will be dedicated for passengers booking taxis through the dispatch centre, starting from November 1, RTA’s annual Public Transport Day.
As many as 25 of these taxis will be dedicated for women and families.
“The new service will complement the existing taxis who will continue to serve through the dispatch centre. Hala taxis will take some pressure off them and that will help reduce waiting time for passengers,” said Yousuf Al Ali, CEO of RTA’s Public Transport Agency.
The dedicated fleet of taxis, painted black and while, will not pick passengers from road, but only cater to passengers who booked the taxi through the dispatch centre.
However, normal taxi cabs would continue to take calls from the dispatch centre, until the Hala service gets more vehicles in the next phase.
According to Adel Shakeri, Director of Transportation Systems Department at RTA, the current average waiting time after booking a taxi on the phone is 14 minutes and once the new service hits the road it will come down to less than 12 minutes.
Shakeri added that the Hala taxis will get priority for the booking service, which is expected to cover around 30 per cent of the demand at the dispatch centre.
“Right now the dispatch centre caters to around 5 per cent of the taxi trips which is around 12,000 bookings daily and with the new system this is expected to increase as the service will definitely improve,” added Shakeri.
Among the new features of Hala taxi is the Wifi service, smart meters that will allow payment of fares through credit cards, Nol, NFC (Near Field Communication) as well as cash.
Hala taxis will also have tablet PCs for passengers on the rear seats that will offer a wide range of services.
The new service has been launched in association with Cars Taxi, which is one of the six taxi franchises operating taxis in Dubai.
Operated under RTA’s new Dispatcher 8 system, the Hala service will charge a basic fare of Dh6 in the day time and Dh10 at night. Taxi bookings can be done through a dedicated number 04-2080808.
A total of 8,359 taxis operate in Dubai currently, and the number will go up to 8,662 taxis by the end of this year as RTA adds more vehicles to the fleet.
