Dubai Metro likely to raise frequency after Eid

The Road and Transport Authority is considering an increase in the frequency of metro rides during morning rush hours to alleviate the high passengers volume at this time.

When waiting for the metro the information board tells us when the next metro will arrive. At most this is within five minutes, as the information board hardly ever displays a longer waiting period.

In reality the waiting period is currently 6 minutes during morning peak times. During Ramadan and at other points of the day this may be more.

These 6 minutes are likely to be reduced after Ramadan.

"In June we have increased the frequency of metro rides by two minutes," says Ramadan Abdulla, director of the Rail Operations Department, RTA. "During morning rush hours the metro now comes every 6 minutes, whereas this used to be 8 minutes.

"We continuously look at the customer service feedback and ridership data, and we are considering to further increase the frequency after Ramadan," he added.

Between 06.00-08.00 a.m. metro users getting on the train in the direction of Jebel Ali experience extreme circumstances as the train in that direction is overcrowded around that time.

"You literally have to squeeze your body in between the crowd to get on the train, and sometimes this is not possible and you miss the ride. Getting off the metro is similarly problematic," says Nadine Heyzel, who travels from Karama to First Gulf Bank between 07.00-08.00 in the morning.

"As a woman I find it very uncomfortable. There is a women department, but sometimes you only find that little space left in the regular department and you end up shoulder-to-shoulder with a stranger."

Ramadan said that although the situation is under review the number of customer complaints referring to the problem has been limited.

He made the remarks on the sideline of an RTA press conference yesterday where the launch of 4 express trains on Dubai Metro Red Line was announced.

The express trains will run at 05.30 and 05.40 in the morning and will reduce the total trip time between Rashidiya and Jebel Ali with ten minutes.

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