Vehicle inspection charge to double

Police and Adnoc say increase will pay for more inspection centres and Emiratisation, but move is criticised by licence applicants .

ABU DHABI // The cost of the inspection required for a vehicle licence will double next week, rising to Dh120 (US$33) from Dh60, Abu Dhabi Police and Adnoc announced yesterday. The decision to raise inspection fees on February 1 the first increase in 10 years coincides with the energy company's plan to increase the number of inspection bays at its centres in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain, cutting waiting times to six minutes from 10 minutes.

A mobile inspection centre for use in remote areas such as Delma Island, and at companies and government departments with large fleets, will also be introduced. More vehicle inspection centres would open in the next six months, said Nasser Ali al Hammadi, the assistant general manager for retail at Adnoc. "The mobile station will serve the island, Delma, until we have built there and it will also help to serve the big companies, like big taxi companies," Mr al Hammadi said at a press conference.

Last month, Adnoc and Abu Dhabi Police signed an agreement for the energy company to expand its vehicle-inspection services. Without disclosing all the locations of the planned new inspection centres, Mr al Hammadi said there would be one on the Corniche and others at Al Mushrif petrol station and in Khalifa City A. Others were scheduled for Al Ain, and Madinat Zayed in Al Gharbia. "The Western Region is very important," said Mr al Hammadi. "There is the Abu Dhabi plan to develop the Western Region, and we are planning to go with that."

The price increase was not well-received by motorists waiting at the vehicle inspection centre off Airport Road yesterday "It is too much," said Rizwan Sultan al Malik, an Abu Dhabi resident, sitting in his Honda Civic. "Everything is high. Accommodation is very expensive. I am a student studying for a bachelor's degree in business administration. My father gives me about Dh300 a month, so how can I manage?"

Raval, from Ruwais, who declined to give his last name, agreed that the price increase was tough, but said it would be worthwhile if it meant faster and expanded services.His Mitsubishi Pajero, which he planned to buy second-hand, was being inspected yesterday. "Other companies check for any touch-ups or if the car has been involved in a collision," he said. "So if I am going to buy a second-hand car, I take it first there and then come for inspection here. If they check everything, that would be better for us."

Vehicle inspections include checking the quality of tyres, examining the chassis and vehicle structure and an emissions test. Last year, 450,000 vehicles were inspected at Adnoc centres. Mr al Hammadi said the price increase was necessary to recoup some of the costs of the expansion and upgrades, as well as Adnoc's Emiratisation programme. About 50 per cent of employees in the company's vehicle inspection department are Emiratis, including 21 qualified technicians licensed by Abu Dhabi Police, according to Adnoc.

Adnoc said it was moving ahead with plans to introduce "green diesel", which has a sulphur content of 10 parts per million, compared with its current diesel, which has 500 parts per million. The company has an agreement with an unnamed company to introduce inspection services for vehicles running on natural gas, a cleaner alternative to petrol. Last year, the company announced plans to build 16 compressed natural-gas pumping stations.