Hosting Community of Metros (COMET) Conference 2023

Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) opened today, the Community of Metros (COMET) Conference 2023 in Dubai, in collaboration with Transport Strategy Centre at the Imperial College of London under the theme: Financial, Operational and Environmental Sustainability. About 100 experts and specialists representing 25 countries are convening to discuss several topics related to the metro operational systems.

COMET 2023, which is held for the first time in the Middle East, examines over four days several critical issues relating to metro systems including the adoption of technology and innovation, reliability of metro performance, employment in the metro systems, and matters related to financial, operational, and environmental sustainability. The conference tackles operational challenges, including funding for projects, and advancing environmental, social, and corporate governance across the industry.

Abdulmuhsen Ibrahim Kalbat, CEO of Rail Agency: RTA, said: “COMET 2023 aims to foster international collaboration between government entities and private firms involved in the operation of the metro networks across the world by sharing their best practices and systems. Numerous sessions and workshops will be held focusing on metro-related issues such as measuring the quality of the operational process, periodic technical visits, and maintenance, among others.

“The conference will host a host of international experts and analysts of public transport performance, including representatives from the Transport Strategy Centre at the Imperial College of London who will discuss and share global experiences. Many industry leaders from renowned organisations, such as MTR (Hong Kong), TMB (Barcelona), and BVG (Berlin), will make important presentations on vital metro-related topics,” added Kalbat.

Performance Measurement
“The key topics of the COMET include the core objectives of metro projects, and the assessment of performance and factors contributing to service quality. Discussions will also encompass analysing passenger numbers, the growing reliance on the metro as a preferred mode of transportation, comparative metro usage statistics across different times of the year, future projections, and emerging challenges that to be confronted.

“Participants will discuss the leading practices and innovations in the metro, public transport, and mass transit systems, service improvement, sustainability, and long-term strategic planning. The event will open up opportunities to broaden cooperation among metro and mass transit industry leaders and experts. It will offer them insights into challenges and proposed solutions for managing this sophisticated system and leveraging a culture of innovation to refine the planning of future projects,” concluded the Rail Agency CEO

COMET
Initiated by the Centre for Transport Strategy at the Imperial College of London in 1994, COMET serves as a global platform for setting benchmarks, fostering collaboration, and exchanging model practices among metro networks worldwide.

Field Visits
As part of the COMET agenda, participants will make several field visits to strategic locations, including the Enterprise Command and Control Centre, the Dubai Metro Operational Control Center, and Expo 2020 Metro Station such that they can have insights into the top practices adopted in the Dubai Metro.

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