Higher bus, Metro fares on some routes

Public Transport commuters will have to pay more for traveling inside Central Business Districts (CBD) from Friday, as the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) realign mobility zones in Dubai.

With the launch of the Green Line, which runs through the heart of CBD, less than a month away, the expansion of zones from five to seven, metro and bus fares for travelling in the area would be affected.

The expansion has seen a division of the CBD into two zones as Satwa, Karama and Bur Dubai, which used to be part of Zone Five have been carved into a new zone, which means travelling between Bur Dubai and Gold Souq in Deira which was earlier in the same zone and cost Dh1.80, would now cost more.

However, the RTA insists that the price structure has remained same and the expansion of zones would provide more flexibility to commuters.

“We realigned the zones to make it flexible for commuters, but we have kept the price structure same, because we don’t want to put extra burden on people,” said Mattar Al Tayer, Chairman of the Board and Executive Director of the RTA.

Though most zones have remained unaffected by the realignment as Zone One and Two cover exactly the same areas as it did before, zones Three, Four and Five have been altered and reshaped slightly to make way for Zones Six and Seven.

One apparent benefit commuters would have of the realignment is that areas of Muhaisana and Mirdiff which were earlier divided into two zones would now come under one single Zone Four.

“Commuters won’t have to pay the fare for two zones for just crossing the Emirates Road in Muhaisanah, which was the case earlier. We have put the entire area into one zone so that people can use the buses to cross the road and not put their lives in danger by trying to cross the busy highway by foot,” said Al Tayer, explaining the details of the realignment in one of the zones.

The basic fare for travelling on the Metro as well as buses remains the same. A short journey not exceeding three kilometres will continue to cost Dh1.80, while travel within the same zone but exceeding three kilometres would cost Dh2.30.

A journey between two zones would continue to cost Dh4.10 and beyond two zones would be Dh5.80.

The new zones would come into effect from Friday, August 12.

RTA launches Nol monthly passes

Regular commuters of Dubai Metro can now travel unlimited within their selected zones as RTA launches monthly passes a variety of monthly passes for fixed price.

The passes, which would be available from Friday, August 12, would come in three denominations of Dh100, Dh180 and Dh270, each with a particular travel plan, Khaleej Times reported.

The Dh100 pass is limited for travelling with in a zone, while the Dh180 pass would allow travelling between two neighbouring zones.

The third pass which is worth Dh270 is a bargain as it allows unlimited travel across all zones.

All three passes could be used to on public buses as well as metro and are valid for one month.

The launch of the passes comes in time for the start of Green Line early next month and RTA is expecting a steep rise in ridership.

“We expect a sharp increase in the number of public transport users with the launch of Green Line next month, so the monthly pass is a reward for our regular customers. We hope a lot more people would use the Metro and buses with the launch of the passes and save money on travelling,” said Mattar Al Tayer, Chairman of the Board and Executive Director of the RTA, while announcing the new service.

Existing Nol Blue card holders would be able to convert the same cards into any type of pass they want, free of charge, while those who don’t have Blue cards would have to buy the passes by paying Dh70.

Commuters can apply for the passes by filling a form at the Metro ticket counters or with retailers contracted with the RTA.

The passes can be renewed online at the end of every month.

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