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28 March 2024

Are these A/C bus shelters or virtual ovens?

Faulty air conditioners in dozens of bus shelters have made them virtual roadside ovens. (FILE)

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By Staff

Faulty air conditioners in dozens of Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) bus shelters have made them virtual roadside ovens, with temperature inside at least 10 degrees celsius hotter than outside.

According to the Dubai-based tabloid Xpress, 12 out of 38 bus stops surveyed did not have air conditioning, making it difficult for people to wait for buses.

In almost all the non-air conditioned shelters across the densely populated areas like Karama, Bur Dubai and Al Quoz, the mercury inside topped a sweltering 55 degrees celsius, at least 10 degrees higher than the average temperature outside.

"It does not make sense to have these bus stops with huge advertisements and people staying outside," said Mohammad, an Arab who uses public transport.

Fareed, an Indian executive, said that at one place on Karama's Kuwait Road opposite Al Attar Building, only one out of the two bus stops had a working AC set at 23 degrees C.

"People tend to cram inside one of the two double bus stops as the other one is horribly hot," added Fareed.

There are about 900 air-conditioned bus shelters in the city, but it is anybody's guess as to how many of them have working air conditioning.

Patrick Chaundy, president and chief executive of Right Angle Media, the company behind the sleek stops which has struck a deal with the Roads and Transport Authority, said they are aware of the situation.

He attributes it to electrification issues in some cases - as well as vandalism.

"We're working with the Roads and Transport Authority in the spirit of cooperation to address the challenge of electrifying and cooling the shelters," he said.