RTA announces dedicated bus lanes on key Dubai roads to cut travel times

Gulf Today, Staff Reporter

Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has endorsed a plan to construct dedicated lanes for buses and taxis extending 13.1km on six key streets — Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah, 2nd of December, Al Satwa, Al Nahda, Omar bin Al Khattab, and Naif Streets. Scheduled for completion between 2025 and 2027, the project will extend Dubai's network of dedicated bus lanes to 20.1km.

Mattar Al Tayer, Director General, Chairman of the Board of Directors, RTA, said: "The dedicated bus and taxi lanes are part of key global practices and successful transportation policies that assist in encouraging residents to use public transport means rather than their private vehicles.

“The project is designed to shorten travel times, ensure compliance with bus timetables, increase public transport ridership, and enhance the efficiency of taxi services. It also aims to cut operational costs, step up the integration of various transport modes, and reduce emissions. These elements contribute to supporting a host of strategic goals such as integrated Dubai, fostering well-being, and raising the happiness of public transport riders," he noted.

"The expansion of these dedicated bus lanes is projected to decrease bus travel times by rates varying from 24% to 59% during peak hours and enhance bus arrival time used on the dedicated routes from 28% to 56%. Specifically, bus journey time would be reduced by 59% on Naif Street, 54% on Al Satwa Road, 50% on Omar Bin Al Khattab Street, and 38% on Al Nahda Street. Bus arrival times are projected to see improvements by 56% on the 2nd of December Street, 52% on Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah Street, 48% on Al Satwa Road, and 42% on Omar bin Khattab Street. Moreover, extending dedicated bus lanes would boost public transport usage by up to 30% on some roads and reduce the number of buses needed to serve those routes, thanks to the savings in travel times," commented Al Tayer.

“Endorsing the extension of the dedicated bus and taxi lanes plan culminates the remarkable success of the past three phases of the project, which notably reduced the trip time for buses on some routes by approximately 5 minutes per bus, recording an improvement in trip times by an estimated 24%. These results have also significantly boosted the satisfaction rating among riders and drivers of both buses and taxis,” concluded Al Tayer.

Previously, RTA opened dedicated bus lanes extending 7km. This included a combined bus and taxi lane spanning 4.3km on Khalid Bin Al Waleed Road, from the intersection with Al Mina Street to just before its junction with Zaabeel Street, in both directions. Additional lanes were added along parts of Naif Street (1 km), Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah Street (1.2km from Satwa Roundabout to Sheikh Rashid  Road), and Al Ghubaiba Road(0.5km from the intersection with Al Mina Street to Street No.12).