Dubai: It’s goodbye traffic jams, goodbye parking woes for Mihad Kashif. That’s all because he has made the switch to using the Dubai Metro to work despite having a car.
The Sudanese advertising executive said he knew exactly how taxing driving to work could be in the emirate. He used to drive to work every day from his residence in Riqqa to his workplace at Dubai Media City. Apart from the long ride, it was also tedious during rush hour.
“It was very crowded. It squeezes the whole day and disrupts the mood. It’s even worse by the end of the day because traffic’s hectic,” Kashif, 24, who has been driving for two years, told Gulf News.
He tried taking the Metro to check which mode of transportation was more convenient for him. But he found that the commute took 50 to 55 minutes. He admitted it was an on and off decision so, when he got bored, he switched to driving again.
But after clinching a new job in January, his decision to switch to using public transportation to work became much more permanent. His new office was in Downtown Dubai, making the Metro an ideal choice of transport.
“It’s very convenient in terms of time — you sit comfortably doing nothing in the morning and after a long day at work. It’s better than putting your foot on the pedal for a long time,” Kashif said.
Kashif said commuting has many benefits besides the physical ones.
“It’s literally a relaxing 20-minute ride as opposed to driving where I’ll get angry and get psychologically stressed because of the driving behaviour of many motorists here.”
Kashif said he used to spend at least Dh205 on Salik and petrol on a weekly basis, plus the monthly Dh400 parking fees. Now, he only spends around Dh60 to Dh70 on his daily commute weekly.
“The good thing is I don’t have to struggle to find parking every day. I used to park at Dubai Mall, then walk to office. Now I can walk straight to office conveniently.”
On its fifth anniversary, Kashif gave the Metro a rating of 8 out of 10, with 10 being the highest, for its efficiency and reliability.
“I was born and raised in Dubai. I remember the period between 2004 and 2008 in Riqqa where it used to take me an hour to leave my neighbourhood. If I were to take a taxi, they were nowhere, they were literally banished. With the Metro, I can leave my place in less than 10 minutes and there’s a variety of public transport available.”
“The switch [to using the Metro] was a very good decision. I don’t plan on changing it any time soon.”
