Dubai's traffic problems return

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Officials at Dubai Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) will not confirm whether they planned it, but there is little doubt that when the Salik road tolls were introduced, traffic in the city was lower than normal. Children no longer needed taking to and from school and many residents were heading off on extended summer holidays to escape the soaring temperatures. However, in the last fortnight all that has changed, and the topic of traffic congestion is once again on everyone's lips.

‘I have just returned to Dubai and my journey takes me longer than before Salik was introduced,' says Tess Bennett, a teacher who lives in Deira and works close to Al Barsha. ‘Most of my colleagues are in the same situation. And almost every day we have children arriving late because of the traffic. A big problem is the unpredictability of the traffic flow. One day the traffic is really bad in one part of Dubai, and then the next day the congestion has moved somewhere else. It seems that many people do not mind going through Salik every day, and so on Sheikh Zayed Road it is the same as it has always been.'

Time Out has learnt that the RTA has held meetings to look into the reasons why congestion has returned to Sheikh Zayed Road - the very problem Salik was intended to solve. They declined to comment on rumours that the Dhs4 charge currently in place is to be increased, but did say there are currently no plans to bring in more toll gates. A source involved with the analysis of traffic patterns that have emerged in the past two to three weeks, told Time Out the problem is that getting round the Salik tolls has become common practice for many motorists.

‘If you look at the Salik point at Mall of the Emirates, then you will see a lot of drivers are able to drive around this toll,' he said. ‘They go through the shopping mall car park or use a road that is meant only for construction vehicles. They then get straight back on Sheikh Zayed Road. What the RTA is now looking at is closing these routes. We all think Salik can work, but there can be no way for drivers to use Sheikh Zayed Road without paying. When Salik was created we did not see these problems; but analysis has shown they are there and more drivers are becoming aware of how to avoid paying it.'

The RTA's long-term solution to congestion is the Metro system and they have spent millions of dirhams on research, which they say shows people in Dubai will be willing to use public transport if it is reliable and allows them to travel without being outside in the heat for too long. But with this network still being built, and its opening date ranging anywhere from the beginning of 2008 to another year from now, the RTA is aware of the need for urgent action.

Mohammed Obeid Al Mulla, the CEO of the Public Transport Agency at the RTA, believes improved bus services in the city could be the answer. ‘Buses are important,' he says. ‘They will be used if we can make sure they are integrated into the wider public transport system, as with the water buses.'

An RTA marketing official told Time Out the aim was to have more than 30 per cent of all journeys taken in Dubai on public transport - the figure at the moment is thought to be less than 10 per cent. ‘The biggest hurdle we have is not creating these expensive systems - it is relaying this information to people and getting them out of their cars,' says the official. ‘The public awareness campaigns are going to be vital, and after this summer they will be continually launched. Once people get into the habit of using buses then the traffic in the morning and after work will hopefully change.'

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