Nakheel has defended the ticket pricing of its new monorail on Palm Jumeirah in the face of public criticism over the cost of using the transport system.Arabian Business has been inundated with emails and calls to argue tickets – priced at AED25 for a round trip and AED15 for a single journey – were too expensive to travel on the driverless-system, which opened last Thursday.
Mike said: “AED25 for a return journey lasting only nine minutes each way? That is daylight robbery.”
Other readers questioned why the price was more than that charged to use similar public transport systems elsewhere in the world.
Denny said: “They want to ‘encourage’ people to use a ridiculously over-priced system? AED25 will allow you to ride the subway in New York for an entire day. AED35 will allow you to ride the London Underground for an entire day. And in Hong Kong it is even cheaper.”
While Stefani said: “In Singapore, (for) AED5 you can travel the whole of Singapore by the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT).”
In response to an inquiry from Arabian Business about the ticket price structure, a Nakheel spokesman said: “Palm Monorail offers passengers a unique travel experience on the first monorail system of its kind to be opened in the Middle East.
“Passengers can also enjoy unparalleled views of one of Dubai’s most iconic landmarks from the over-ground track which sits at 10 metres above ground level.
“The system will also become part of a completely integrated public transport system over the longer term, with a number of ticketing options and price points for regular travellers.”
The monorail will initially shuttle up to 2,400 passengers per hour between the Gateway Station at the trunk of Nakheel’s man-made island and Atlantis stations at the crescent, where visitors can access the Atlantis Hotel and Aquaventure waterpark.
Four separate trains, each made up of three cars, will initially run along the 5.45km dual-track railway, with the journey between the two stations lasting nine-minutes.
The system will be increased to a total of nine trains per hour with a capacity of 6,000 people once it is connected to the Dubai Metro, which is due to open in September.
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