Over 1.45 million persons used public transport means in Dubai on New Year’s Eve, and the Dubai Metro accounted for the lion share of it, the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) revealed on Tuesday. The Metro ridership touched new heights with 587,542 passengers, which is a record ridership since the launch of the Metro operation in 2009. The Dubai Mall station, Business Bay station and Financial Centre station accounted for the highest number of commuters, as these stations served 506,813 passengers. The number of public bus riders reached 322,066 whereas the marine transit modes were used by about 40,000 passengers. The RTA team responsible for managing traffic movement and handling operational plans during official and annual events, in cooperation with the General Headquarters of Dubai Police and Emaar, had worked out a comprehensive traffic plan to streamline the movement of vehicles and public transit means on New Year’s Eve. The plan catered to the integration of various transit modes and the traffic systems in order to streamline the movement of people to and from the Burj Khalifa area. The Metro working hours were extended to ensure 24-hour operation up to the dawn of Tuesday, besides reducing the headway of the Metro service during peak times. From: Khaleej Times