Buses World News: PUBLIC TRANSPORT WORLDWIDE * United Arab Emirates: * Dubai, bus service history - * Abu Dhabi. Illegal buses / * Thailand: Black boxes requesteds

* The life and times of the Dubai bus since 1968

(Photo: People travelling in a Dubai bus in 2004)
-- It’s comfortable, it’s big, and in many cases, buses drop you at your doorstep. What began as a rickety 17-seater mini bus plying from Al Ittihad Road to Al Sabkha in 1968, the Dubai bus service has now evolved into a sophisticated mode of transportation, travelling across emirates, ferrying thousands of passengers everyday... After 30 years, the minibuses made way for bigger and buses. Public transport slowly progressed and air-conditioned Nissan buses were introduced in 1990... As per latest figures, the Public Transport Agency (PTA) of the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) operates a fleet of 1,299 vehicles, with 1,050 vehicles on the road during peak hours. It generated around 135 million passenger trips in 2014 through 107 routes... The public bus occupancy in Dubai in the first four months of 2014 went up to 42.6 per cent, while in the same period in 2013 it was 39.3 per cent. Dubai ranks third in the world in the public bus occupancy rate after Germany and France...

(Photo: Residents boarding a bus in 2005)
... To facilitate easier access and to encourage people to use the buses more often, the RTA has provided its passengers with air conditioned bus stops, journey planner mobile applications like the Wojahati app, easy connectivity with the Dubai Metro and door-to-door connectivity... Articulated buses (which have two rigid sections linked by a pivoting joint) were introduced on Dubai roads in 2007 and double-decker buses in 2008. In the current fleet operated by the RTA, 66 per cent are standard buses, 21 per cent articulated, nine per cent double-decker buses and the rest coaches... On an average, passengers make 365,000 trips every day on the RTA’s buses. Interestingly, Thursday is the busiest day, with 390,000 passenger trips, while Saturday sees the least passenger trips at 320,000. Fridays see an average of 330,000 passengers...
Dubai - The Khaleej Times, by Dhanusha Gokulan - 5 April 2015

* Abu Dhabi - Illegal private drivers seek passengers at bus station

-- Undeterred by the risk of steep fines or jail terms, drivers of private vehicles are illegally ferrying passengers in Abu Dhabi and to other emirates... Owners of these cars can be seen near the pedestrian bridge on Muroor Road across from the Abu Dhabi main bus terminal... They either approach passers-by near the bridge and at the bus stop or shout “Dubai, Dubai” or “Mussaffah, Mussaffah”, offering passengers a cheap alternative to licensed taxis... A driver, who identified himself as Ahmad, 40, from Islamabad, said a one-way trip to Dubai costs Dh150, compared to the Dh250 metered fare in a silver taxi... The illegal services are popular because they are cheap. Fares can be as little as Dh10, compared with at least Dh50 for a one-way trip from Abu Dhabi to Mussaffah and Dh120 to Baniyas in a registered vehicle... Department of Transport buses cost only Dh4 to Mussaffah or Khalifa City A, but the journey can take up to two hours... Last year, TransAD warned the public not to use unauthorised taxis because the vehicles were not properly equipped for passenger safety and may not be insured...
(Photo by Fatima Al Marzooqi / The National - Private cars illegally ferry passengers between locations in Abu Dhabi every day. Fares are less than licensed taxis) -- Abu Dhabi - The National, by Ramona Ruiz - April 6, 2015

* Thailand - 'Black boxes' urged for interprovincial buses

-- The Land Transport Department will ask operators of interprovincial buses to install devices similar to ‘’black boxes’’ found in airplanes to monitor driver behaviour and reduce road accidents... Earlier, the department launched a pilot project to test the technology on interprovincial buses. It proved successful in reducing road accidents and saving fuel by 3.6%... Sixty buses of the state-run agency were fitted with the devices under the pilot programme...
(Bangkok Post photo - The Land Transport Department looks set to ask operators of interprovincial buses to install the so-called "black boxes" in their vehicles in a bid to reduce road accidents) Bangkok, Thailand - The Bangkok Post - 3 Apr 2015

Labels: public transport worldwide