Mattar Al Tayer, Chairman of the Board and Executive Director of the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), has reaffirmed RTA’s keenness to care for customers spanning various community segments including users of public buses in the Emirate of Dubai.
In particular, he stressed that the RTA would continue to train bus drivers, analyse their training deliverables on the ground from time to time to ensure that they provide top-class services, monitor their daily attitudes, reward highly performing ones, and show no tolerance to those flouting the rules.
Al Tayer made these remarks during a tour to the Jebel Ali Bus Depot, flanked by Dr. Yousef Mohammed Al Ali, CEO of Public Transport Agency; and Abdullah Yousef Al Ali, CEO of Rail Agency; in addition to a host of directors from both Agencies and several employees from various RTA’s agencies and sectors.
Al Tayer attended to an elaborate briefing from Dr. Yousef Al Ali about the daily works at the station and the maintenance, repair and cleaning works of public buses to ensure that they have all means of providing comfortable journeys to riders. The depot has a capacity to handle about 300 buses of the three types in use i.e. standard, articulated and double-deck buses. It consists of 24 bays and has the ability to accommodate 36 buses at a time, and daily works include washing, cleaning and refueling. The station has premises to accommodate about 50 employees and attached residential quarters for up to 300 bus drivers.
RTA Chairman of the Board and Executive Director also inspected the Mobile Library project; a standard RTA bus that is being restructured & converted to act as a mobile library, thus constituting the blueprints of a knowledge project in the making to be launched by the RTA in the near future with the aim of diffusing knowledge and the culture of reading in an innovative and enjoyable environment for those who fancy reading and gaining knowledge in various fields and specialties.
Al Tayer stated that such projects were envisioned in a master plan for uplifting public bus transit systems to enable mass transport users move smoothly to any destination within the Emirate of Dubai. Such a drive, he continued, would involve procuring new buses with world-class specifications, and the constructing expanding the construction of bus shelters to cover various communities of Dubai Emirate.
"Bus depots are part of RTA master plan developed for leveraging mass transit services by public buses towards attracting additional riders and accordingly reducing traffic congestion on the roads. This objective will be materialised through the deployment of sophisticated buses characterised by high quality, affordable fares, comprehensive geographical coverage, and capable of contributing to the integration between mass transit systems comprising public buses, Dubai Metro, and marine transit modes.
"The plan also includes constructing additional air-conditioned bus shelters for waiting riders, and developing smart systems, programs and apps such as the Journey Planer (Wojhati), automated bus management project, unified card, and real-time passenger information system among other smart programs & services the RTA is considering to offer to public transport users," he added.
Shedding light on the activities of the Agency, Dr. Al Ali said, "RTA Public Transport Agency has got in place a sound plan for the maintenance of public buses aligned with the world’s best standards in terms of quality and operational efficiency. Maintenance works are outsourced to contractors who are specialised in some types of buses for three years to come, in a way that ensures the safety and sustainability of RTA public bus fleet, and raises the satisfaction of customers who are aspiring for efficient buses fitted with the highest safety standards.
To ensure the readiness and efficiency of public buses, the Maintenance and Services Department at Public Transport Agency undertakes the implementation of remedial and preventive maintenance programmes, ensures the repairs of accidents by internal maintenance teams, and makes external maintenance contracts with local dealers of some bus types.