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RTA opens bridge linking Dubai Media City & the Greens

RTA opens bridge linking Dubai Media City & the Greens

Dubai - Roads & Transport Authority:

The Roads & Transport Authority (RTA) has opened the bridge linking Dubai Media City and the Greens for traffic, providing a direct link between the two sides of Sheikh Zayed Road in that area.

Engineer Maitha Mohammed bin Udai, CEO of RTA Traffic & Roads Agency, said: “The Bridge, whose designs and construction phases have been endorsed and supervised by the RTA as per the applicable specifications in Dubai Emirate, serves roads users on both sides of Sheikh Zayed Road; namely Dubai Internet City, Dubai Media City and Knowledge Village on the one hand, and the Greens, Tecom, and Emirates Hills on the other.

“The Bridge, which is being constructed at the cost of Dubai Technology and Media Free Zone Authority (Tecom), comprises two lanes in each direction and two surface signalized intersections at both ends of the Bridge. Opening the Bridge will ease the traffic congestion on Sheikh Zayed Road, particularly in the sector from Street 331 (4.5 Interchange) and the 5th Interchange.

“RTA is keen on linking the two sides of Sheikh Zayed Road with roads & bridges network serving the inhabitants of those areas, Dubai Internet City, Dubai Media City and the residential blocks at the opposite side of the road to ease the mobility between the two sides of Sheikh Zayed Road; which contributes to the fulfillment of RTA vision of providing Safe & Smooth Transport for All.

“In future, the new Bridge will provide a link between the Parallel Roads and Al Wasl Road through capitalizing on Al Safouh Tunnel linking the neighbourhood of the Knowledge Village and Jumeirah up to Al Wasl Road. It will also open up more options to motorists in travelling from areas in the vicinity of Emirates Hills to Jumeirah and Al Wasl Road.

“Opening the Bridge coincides with the construction of a series of road projects in the area such as the Parallel Roads Project which, upon completion, will integrate with the new Bridge, play an instrumental role in distributing traffic movement and flow across the area, and cope with the projected increase in population and vehicular movement associated with the completion of several property development projects in the area” said Maitha in a concluding remark.

Al Tayer: Completion rate hits 85% in Al Khawaneej Bus Depot

Al Tayer: Completion rate hits 85% in Al Khawaneej Bus Depot

Roads & Transport Authority – Mohammed Al Munji:
H.E. Mattar Al Tayer, Chairman of the Board and Executive Director of Roads & Transport Authority (RTA), announced the completion of 85 per cent of construction works of Al Khawaneej Bus Depot and revealed that the station will start operation during the first half of this year. Al Tayer also expressed his delight with the operation of Al Rawiyya Bus Depot; the latest bus depot completed and operated by the RTA in August 2009. Al Tayer made this statement during a site tour that took him to the two depots accompanied by the CEO of Public Transport Agency Eisa Abdul Rahman Al Dosari, CEO of Corporate Technical Support Services Sector Abdullah Al Madani, and several RTA directors.

Al Tayer set off his tour by inspecting the Bus Depot at Al Rawiyya, comprising a bus parking yard capable of housing 295 buses (144 standard buses and 151 articulated buses) in addition to an electromechanical maintenance workshop with a capacity to accommodate 20 buses at a time, a supply line for 12 buses, a washing unit for 20 buses at a time, and an administrative office for about 40 employees. Al Tayer was briefed by Eisa Al Dosari and Abdullah Yousef Al Ali (Director of Bus Dep’t) on the progress at the Depot including bus operation & maintenance and drivers training programs. The number of bus drivers at the station is estimated as 691 drivers, and the number of buses about 227 sophisticated buses of Mercedes brand and SITA manufactured by the Dutch VDL company. Buses are deployed over 29 routes and the rate of bus compliance with the planned entry & exit time schedules is as high as 99 per cent.

Al Tayer stated that he was delighted with the operational results of the station which was fitted with the latest equipment and technical tools for carrying out all maintenance works and electromechanical repairs, in addition to the latest testing systems, spare part warehouses, and offices for administrative & technical staff. RTA bus maintenance workshops are operated at the highest global safety standards, and maintenance is done in air-conditioned halls equipped with the latest tools and machinery.

Afterwards Al Tayer moved on to inspect the work progress at Al Khawaneej Bus Depot where the contracting company is putting the final touches as the whole works are expected to be completed during the first half of this year. Designs and infrastructure works completed included road networks, and parking & sewage systems whereas building completion rate reached 85% in the project. The station includes construction of a bus parking yard capable of housing 284 (comprising 146 standard buses and 138 articulated buses) in addition to an electromechanical maintenance workshop with a capacity to accommodate 20 buses at a time, a supply line for 12 buses, a washing unit for 20 buses at a time, and an administrative office for about 40 employees.

Al Tayer stated that the project is part of RTA master plan to upgrade mass transportation on buses with the aim of attracting new commuters and hence contribute to easing roads congestions. These highly sophisticated buses feature top quality specifications, affordable fare and wide geographical coverage and as such provide a big boost to the integration of mass transit modes that include public buses, Dubai Metro and marine modes. The plan also considered construction air-conditioned bus shelters, introduction of electronic systems such as the journey planner “Wojhati”, automatic bus management scheme, unified card scheme, and real time passenger information system, in addition to “Sharekni” and “Awselni” programs.
At the end of the tour, Al Tayer hailed the efforts of employees who are working tirelessly to complete the project, and called on the contracting company to do more efforts to complete the project on time.

Photo caption:
 Mattar Al Tayer inspecting the work progress at Al Khawaneej Station
 Al Tayer briefed on Bus maintenance program at Al Rawiyya

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RTA provides 10 touch screens for public use of Wojhati Program

RTA provides 10 touch screens for public use of Wojhati Program

Roads & Transport Authority – Nashwan Atta’ee:
The Public Transport Agency at Roads & Transport Authority (RTA) announced that its work teams have recently completed setting up of 10 touch screen platforms; reflecting the latest technology in use in the field of passenger information service under Wojahti program (Journey Planner) at several public locations and outlets of the Agency.

It was confirmed by Eisa Abdul-Rahman Al Dosari, CEO of RTA Public Transport Agency, that the work teams of Planning & Business Development Dep’t of the Agency had coordinated with Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Co. (Du) the installation of these intelligent screens at: Gold Souk Bus Station, Main Customer Service Center at RTA old premises at Umm Al Ramool, Rashidiya Metro Station, Al Ittihad Metro Station (2 screens), Khalid bin Al Waleed Metro Station, Burj Khalifa Metro Station, Mall of the Emirates Metro Station, Dubai International Airport (Terminal 3) Metro Station, and Deira City Center Metro Station.

“These screens are powered by high-speed internet (Wi Fi) connectivity and offered as complimentary service from the RTA to all segments of the community. These screen platforms enable public transport users to access Wojhati program and make prior planning of their journeys and identify the public transport means available in Dubai such that they can access their destinations swiftly and travel safely” said Al Dosari.

These screens are easy to use and so is Wojhati program. The user can either access the website in Arabic or English, then follow three simple steps: firstly enter the name of the place where the user is in along with the intended destination; which are obtainable from the options automatically offered by the system. The second step calls for the user to select the date and timing of the journey, and in the third and final step the user presses “Map” where he or she will get within a few seconds a list of journeys using various public transport modes including information such as the journey time, and a detailed route map including the names of areas en route of the concerned public transport mode along with the reference points and other GIS that help the user access the required destination in an accurate, speedy and effective manner.

Al Dosari expected that the number of Wojhati users to double with the launch of these screens which do not require more than a few minutes to use, and yet are considered a great addition which will undoubtedly improve the culture of using public transport among a wide spectrum in Dubai Emirate. “This step underscores RTA continued attention to apply the latest technologies and means capable of easing the use of various public transport means” he added.

It is note-worthy that Wojhati Portal was launched by Public Transport Agency on 25 April 2009 in a broad press conference held at the Head Office of the Agency in the presence of a large number of written, audio, visual and electronic media. Once unveiled, the portal received huge number of visitors from within and outside the UAE, clocking about 23000 visitors last February.