Mansour bin Mohammed honours winners of Dubai Award for Sustainable Transport 2019

Under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Dubai Crown Prince, H.H. Sheikh Mansour bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, President of the Dubai International Marine Club, honoured the winners of the 11th edition of Dubai Award for Sustainable Transport, DAST.

The award is an initiative of Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority, RTA, to motivate public and private sectors to contribute to easing traffic congestion and protect the environment.

On his arrival at the venue at the Dubai World Trade Centre, Sheikh Mansour was received by Mattar Al Tayer, Director-General and Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of the RTA, along with a host of high ranking officials from the public and private sectors.

Sheikh Mansour and the attendees watched a short film about DAST highlighting the role of the award in protecting the environment and natural resources through conserving the consumption of power and implementing the principles of sustainable development; which are considered key components of a healthy future environment. It also instils the concept of public transport as a tool for curbing carbon emission. Attendees also watched another documentary film about the progression of the Award, along with the steady growth in the award’s categories, honourees, attendees and topics.

Dan Ammann, CEO, Cruise Automation, delivered a speech in which he discussed the future of autonomous mobility and its benefits on people, economy, natural resources, time and money.

"The savings and economic revenues generated from the implementation of the Dubai Autonomous Transportation Strategy aims at converting 25 percent of total mobility journeys in the city into autonomous and driverless journeys by 2030, which is expected to hit AED22 billion. He said that around 2.1 million traffic accidents take place in Dubai due to human error. And people tend to waste about one week (186 hours) each year by being stranded in snarls," he said.

"Cruise Automation subjects its vehicles to the most challenging and complex situations simulating on-road conditions experienced by drivers to negotiate them skilfully. The systems fitted to the vehicle can capture information while the vehicle is in motion and analyse it to ensure compliance with the safety and security standards. The use of autonomous electric vehicles contributes to safeguarding lives and accelerating the transition to the use of alternative energy," he added.

Accompanied by Al Tayer, Sheikh Mansour then awarded the winners of various categories of the award. DP World was the winner in the Mobility Management category for the Smart Transport initiative. Car Transport, part of AW Al Rostamani, finished second for an initiative of using digital technology to boost logistical transport through using hi-tech to improve the efficiency of the fleet. Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company, Masdar, finished third for an initiative that encourages mobility practices through walking and cycling by providing suitable facilities and environment.

In the Mobility Safety category, Dubai Municipality was the winner for the Smart Mobility project of the Municipality’s fleet, which uses new technology to improve the transport safety based on motivating individuals and achieving positive results. The Department of Urban Planning and Municipalities, Abu Dhabi City Municipality, was the runner-up for an advanced road traffic safety system.

Sheikh Mansour awarded Abu Dhabi’s Department of Transport, the winner of the Environmental Conservation Award category, for its Green Transport initiative involving the use of low-emission vehicles. This strategic initiative, which covered the city, was well planned and constructed. It included performance indicators, and ambitious environmental and sustainability objectives. DP World came second for its initiative to improve the truck engine at the docks. The initiative addresses the implementation and ensures business continuity without impacting the port’s operations. It also generated excellent results; which can be applied to similar places. Dubai Municipality came second for the Sustainable Waste Management System.

In the People of Determination category, the Future Rehabilitation Centre was the winner for a smart app that tracks the movement of buses. It enables parents to track the journey of their children from and to their homes. It accurately specifies the time to respective destinations such that parents can get ready to receive their children. It also enables the bus driver to send notifications to parents once the bus approaches their homes. The team can verify students’ attendance and communicate with parents in case of emergencies in transit. The app uses the latest technologies in mobility of People of Determination and ensures effective communication between parents and the management of the centre.

Sheikh Mansour awarded the winners of the Special Category. The reporter Nilanjana Gupta, from Khaleej Times won the Best Media Award for her efforts to encourage public transport, conserve the environment and improve the safety of transit means. Johaina Khalidya, Ahmed Sawalha, Saeed Mahmoud and Rana Afifi from Al Ain News Gate won the Best Media Team Award.

In the Best Academic Research Award, the winner was Suleiman Al Zuhair from the UAE University for research about the production of biodiesel from algae. Khaled Hamad from the University of Sharjah came second for research about the assessment of green pavements in the UAE. The third award went to Maryam Mohammed Al Hamoudi from the University of Sharjah for research about the evaluation and modeling of pedestrian traffic safety in the Emirate of Sharjah.

In the Best Students Project category, the winners were Israa Mohammad Taleb Al-Ani, Tasnim Mohi Uddin Al Amari and Farah Maher Khalifa from the University of Sharjah for integrated hybrid and sustainable network of ferries. It uses solar cells to produce desalinated water in fuel cells. The second was Aysha Hasan from the British University of Dubai for an initiative about a priority indicator for the lighting of federal roads in the UAE. The third award was shared by Mohammed Amer Mohammed Al Midaff, Haza Ahmed Mohammed Al-Ali and Khalifa Yousef Mohammed Al Zarooni from the Applied Technology Secondary School in Sharjah for a signalling road crossing device for visually impaired individuals.

In the Ambassador of Sustainability award, the winner was Chithira Bon Sylvan from Curtin University in Dubai. He contributed to the environment and conservation of resources, including the use of solar energy, and promoted the awareness of sustainability and power consumption.

The University of Sharjah won the best academic institution supporting sustainability. It transformed the University of Sharjah campus into a sustainable environment system through initiatives aimed to save energy and water consumption, recycling, use of recyclable materials and encouraging employees to share transport.

His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum also honoured the members of the Judges Committee headed by Hamdan Al Shaa’er. His Highness then honoured the sponsors and supporters of the 11th edition of DAST.

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