Taxi firms in Dubai have been told to upgrade their services to meet public demand generated by the emirate’s unprecedented urban expansion, the Roads & Transport Authority (RTA) said on Saturday.
Drivers would be expected to undergo intensive training courses in order to improve poor services, CEO of the RTA’s Public Transport Agency Eissa Abdul Rahman Al-Dosari said in a statement.
The agency had held a series of extended meetings with franchise firms Metro Taxi, Arabian and Cars, under the umbrella of the RTA Dubai Taxi Agency, Al-Dosari said.
The companies have been told to eliminate practices “such as the refusal of cab drivers to lift passengers to their destinations citing traffic bottlenecks and non-feasibility of the financial return of driving to a number of areas witnessing traffic jams”, Al-Dosari continued.
The RTA said in Feburary drivers refusing fares could soon be banned from work for up to 10 days.
A recent survey by UAE daily Gulf News found 85% of respondents had been refused taxi journeys in Dubai because of their choice of destination, while a large number complained of poor services due to driver behaviour, cost and availability.
Training was needed to prepare “professional drivers capable of dealing with all segments of the community in a polite, witty and patient, manner”, Al-Dosari said, adding that drivers should be regularly assessed in terms of skill, health and safety and environmental requirements.
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