- City Fajr Shuruq Duhr Asr Magrib Isha
- Dubai 04:25 05:43 12:19 15:46 18:50 20:09
New Nol packages offering daily, weekly, monthly and annual public transportation passes for commuters will also come into effect from November 11. (SUPPLIED)
The highly anticipated Dubai Tram will be officially launched on November 11, but residents will have to wait another day before the services are opened for the public.
The news was confirmed by the Roads and Transport Authority, with Abdulla Ali Al Madani, CEO, Corporate Technical Support Services adding that at Dh3 for a ride in the Silver class and at Dh6 for a ride in the Gold class, the Dubai Tram is one of the cheapest public transportation modes in the world.
The tram will operate from 5.30am until midnight, with the November 11 launch also lifting limitations on the 50 per cent concession on fares for senior citizens, which earlier applied only to UAE nationals, but will now benefit all expats over the age of 60 years via registering with a Blue Nol Card.
A similar discount is also applicable to students and can be purchased immediately with the RTA.
Commuters travelling across the seven zones will find their fares calculated according to the three-tier levels of travel.
The Blue Nol card can be applied online, through the RTA’s mobile app or at manned ticket office machines, at metro and bus stations.
The new Nol packages offering daily, weekly, monthly and annual public transportation passes for commuters will also come into effect on the same day.
The RTA further added that now gold card users are applicable to buying the packages too, unlike earlier. Meanwhile, upon purchasing any of the new fare packages, the existing balance on your Nol card can be used for parking charges or usage of single trips to other zones.
New zone fares
Speaking further on how the zones will work in conjunction with the Dubai Tram, Al Madani explained: "The city of Dubai is divided across seven tariff zones, designed specifically to accommodate all transport modes, be it the metro, the bus or the tram.
"The entire tram route itself falls under the number two tariff zone."
The tram ride will cost Dh3 for a ride in the Silver class and at Dh6 for a ride in the Gold class, while the red tickets will cost Dh4.
Commuters travelling across the seven zone will find their fares calculated according to the three tier levels of travel, with Level 1 comprising travelling within one single zone or travelling between two adjacent zones that does not exceed 3kms.
Al Madani stated: "A customer that lives on the edge of one zone and works on the edge of a second zone, less than 3kms away should not be made to pay for two zones. We want to make life easier for the customer so we will charge him only for a single zone of travelling."
Similarly, Level 2 comprises travelling across two zones, exceeding more than 3km, while Level 3 comprises commuting across all zones.
Al Madani stated: "We are not charging the customer for the mode of transport they are using; we are charging them for their trip instead. For example, if the customer is using the tram and the metro within the same zone, then they will still only be charged the flat fare of Dh3."
He continued: "Like before, the customer has three hours to complete a trip. You can ride the metro for three hours and pay the same amount, irrespective of how many zones they are travelling between or mixing their modes between the bus, tram or metro.
"They can make up to three mode changes. But when they make the change, they are granted a 30-minute time limit to switch between modes for flexibility."
Validation of your ticket
While passengers will be able to use their existing Nol cards for the Dubai Tram service, a special system will be introduced where a stand near the platform doors will allow passengers to validate their rides upon entering and exiting the tram.
These Ticket Validation Machines or TVM will require commuters to check-in with their Nol cards upon entering the tram and check-out once their ride has been completed, similar to how the system currently works on the RTA run buses.
Al Madani said: "When you are checking in for any public transport mode you need to first have minimum Dh7.5 on your Nol card, which is the maximum cost you would pay to travel across all zones.
"“Once you complete the journey, you check out once again and your balance is returned. Failure to do so will cause you to pay a higher fare."
The RTA has stated the 44-metre long tram stations will come equipped with the TVMs, with stations 1-3 housing four machines on the platform as they are single platform stations; stations 4-11 are dual platforms so will house four machines on each.
The RTA has assured that each of the tram stations will also come equipped with facilities to purchase Nol cards inside the venue also.
The Dubai Trame route will cover 11 stations across 10.6kms that starts from Dubai Police Academy in Al Sufouh and heads down to Dubai Marina and Jumeirah Beach Residence before looping back.
According to the RTA, the Dubai Tram can ferry up to 405 passengers, across seven cabins that will be divided across several travel classes, including Gold, Silver, Women and Children and one that is disable friendly.
The tram will be able to travel at the maximum speed of 50kmph, but will average 30kmph, according to the RTA, with 60 fixed seats and 12 tip-up seating.
The JLT and the Damac Station will be directly linked to the Dubai Tram stations, while two of the stations will also have link to the water buses, taxis and the Dubai Ferry.
Meanwhile, Station 9 will have the largest car parking space and will offer a direct link to The Palm Monorail.
Follow Emirates 24|7 on Google News.