DUBAI // Transport bosses are making arrangements for this year’s Eid Al Fitr holidays to reduce the likelihood of congestion on Dubai’s roads.
Extra bus services, as well as signs to direct traffic, will play a role in the Roads and Transport Authority’s plan to lessen the traffic burden as many UAE residents enjoy the break.
Ten buses will provide a free park-and-ride option to the public between The Dubai Mall and World Trade Centre, which will also help cover for any potential shortage of taxis in that area.
Buses will provide services starting from 1pm up to the end of events during Eid.
The RTA has given permission to limousine firms to pick up customers from The Dubai Mall and other malls during Eid to provide additional service to the 9,341 taxis in operation.
The RTA will install 20 traffic signs around the Burj Khalifa to redirect the flow of cars through Business Bay to reach Sheikh Zayed Road or Al Khail Road, to ease pressure on Financial Centre Road.
Temporary signs have also been installed to direct road users to Zabeel bridges to reach Burj Khalifa from Sheikh Rashid Street.
To ensure a smooth traffic flow during peak hours, traffic signals on Financial Centre Road will be monitored and controlled, said Maitha bin Udai, chief executive of the Traffic and Roads Agency at the RTA.
Customer Service Centres will be closed from Thursday to the third day of Eid.
All paid parking zones in Dubai will be free from Thursday until the third day of Eid.
However, the multistorey parking and parking lots at the Fish Market will not be free during Eid.
On Friday, the stations on the Metro’s Green and Red lines will open from 10am to 2am Saturday, reopening at 5.50am until 2am Sunday.
Stations on the Red Line on Sunday will open from 5.30am to midnight, and on the Green Line from 5.50am until midnight.
On Friday Dubai Tram will start at 9am and continue until 1.30am the next day.
On Saturday and Sunday, the tram service will start 6.30am and continue until 1.30am the next day.
Metro feeder bus stations at Rashidiya, Mall of the Emirates, Ibn Battuta, Abu Hail, Burj Khalifa-Dubai Mall will also be operating longer hours and will stay open between 5.15am and 1.10am.
On Saturday and Sunday, public buses at main stations such as Gold Souk and Ghubaiba will start at 5am and continue until midnight.
Subsidiary stations such as Al Qusais, Satwa, Al Quoz Industrial and Jebel Ali will operate 6am to 10.10pm from the Jebel Ali Station, and from 5am to 11pm at other stations, except for Route C01, which will be in operate around the clock.
Commercial buses and intercity bus services from the main stations will operate around the clock during the holiday, while subsidiary stations – such as Union Square and Sabkha – will start at 5.30am and continue running until midnight.
Water taxis will operate from 10am to 10pm, and the electric abras at the Dubai Mall-Burj Khalifa station will operate from 5.45am to 11.30pm.
On Thursday and Friday, the Dubai Ferry will start at 2.30pm from Al Ghubaiba to Al Mamzar station, with a one-hour voyage for tourists during Eid at 3pm and 5pm.
The ferry at the Marina station will start at 11am and 6.30pm from the Marina to Al Ghubaiba during Eid.
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