Dubai's new projects to ease traffic

Dubai's new floating bridge, now open, is set to reduce traffic flow on Maktoum Bridge and provide commuters with an alternative route across the creek.

Three major projects in Dubai worth AED300 million are set to help ease traffic jams and improve road and transport services as the emirate continues its rapid growth.

The new projects - inaugurated by HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai on Sunday - include the new floating bridge, the waterbus service and the city's new articulated buses.

The new commuter bus project with a fleet of 80 buses for the city's roads will be managed by the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) in a move to give the city's transport an overhaul and to reduce the number of cars on the roads.

Also easing pressure on roads is the 300 metre long, six-lane floating bridge linking the two banks of Dubai Creek just south of Maktoum Bridge, which opened Monday.

The bridge - connecting Deira and Bur Dubai - is expected to provide an alternative to commuters wanting to avoid the RTA's controversial Salik toll on Sheikh Zayed Road between Garhoud Bridge and Mall of the Emirates.

It is also set to reduce traffic on heavily hit Maktoum Bridge by over a third according to the authority.

The floating bridge is open to traffic from 6am to 10pm, but closes to traffic after 10pm to allow ships to pass through, the RTA said.

Dubai's new waterbus service is set to start operating shortly, according to officials at the transport authority

The fleet of 10 waterbuses and five stations along the creek is also expected to help ease traffic congestion on the city's bridges.

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