|
DUBAI
Commuting countdown
A new Metro system launching this month could change more than just the emirate’s dire traffic jams
Kate Douglas is a writer based in Dubai
“I saw it move!” It’s a cry many Dubai residents have let out recently – as though some spacecraft recently landed in Jumeirah Beach Park had just shown signs of life. The exclamations are caused by sightings of initial runs of the city’s new metro system, set to operate from 9 September.
Some believe the metro will change Dubai forever. No more frustrating traffic jams, an end to pricey taxi fares – people will be able to shoot from one end of town to the other for no more than a strangely precise AED5.8 (US$8; a typical taxi fare would be around AED40). For many, it will mean a lot more freedom.
Others are more sceptical. Unlike in other subway-centric cities such as London, it’s impossible to imagine simply sauntering over to a metro station in Dubai. Nobody walks in this city, where it is just not possible to cross most roads – and where the 40˚C temperatures mean it’s difficult to remain outside for longer than a few minutes during the four summer months of the year. What’s more, the 47 stations that make up the Red and Green lines (the former is set to partly launch this month, the latter by March 2010) do not cover vast areas of the city. So unless you live and work right next to two stations, you’ll still need a set of wheels.
The real test of whether the metro will work, then, is the less exciting bus system, which will ferry passengers to stations. Its performance so far inspires little confidence. “I either wait for a few minutes or for over an hour,” says Richard Watts, a Dubai resident. “Once they turn up, they often have broken chairs and no AC. I arrive at work drenched in sweat.”
In response to such grumbles, the Road and Transport Authority has promised 41 new bus routes to service train stations every 10 minutes, as well as thousands of parking spaces. What’s more, the authority is planning more than 1,300km of cycle paths and debating a free bike system, as seen in similarly flat European cities such as Amsterdam. For most, however, cycling will only be bearable during the seven or eight cooler months of the year.
But there is, perhaps, a more deep-seated reason why 47 percent of people have stated they won’t use the metro in a local poll. Public transport so far has been the preserve of lower-paid tiers of society and as a result still carries a social stigma. “I’m worried that the snobby people in Dubai won’t use it,” Saleem Bablani, an Indian resident, says. “They won’t want to mix with poorer people.”
There have been rumours of increased road tolls and other similar methods of nudging car users onto the trains. The trains themselves have been built with one plusher “gold” carriage and four “silver” cars, as well as designated areas for women and children. You see, the metro isn’t simply part of a transport plan. It’s also, unavoidably, a social plan – to provide an emirate crammed with different cultures (and very different driving styles) with another means of interaction. Should it work, it could fundamentally change the cultural fabric of Dubai.
They’ve done the research, they’ve spent the money (upwards of AED14bn), and there’s no doubt the metro will improve the city for some, but it will almost certainly take time for the system to run smoothly. We ought to expect, then, perhaps not a spacecraft, but certainly a launchpad.
|
ILLUSTRATION: MORTEN MORLAND @ DEBUTART |
