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Upon arrival at the premises of the ceremony held at the Dubai World Trade Center, HE Mattar Al Tayer, Director-General and Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of the RTA, and a host of Directors of public and private entities received His Highness.
His Highness and attendees then watched a video about DAST focusing on the efforts of the Emirate in conserving the environment & natural resources, and implementing the principles of sustainable development, considering its pivotal role in shaping the future and welfare of human beings.
After that, His Excellency Maurice Cheung, Director of European Business at the MTR Corporation cum President of the UITP Asia-Pacific Region, delivered a speech where he paid tribute to the great achievements made by the UAE in general and Dubai in particular in road networks infrastructure and transport systems, which are viewed as a role model to follow in the region.
Mr. Cheung reviewed the challenges facing urban transport including cities expansion, increased demand for city transport, traffic congestion and carbon emissions. He pointed out that many cities had insufficient transport systems that needed renovation, whereas some cities had advanced public transport system with increased usage of private vehicles. Other cities had public transport system with high rates of public transport ridership, cycling and walking, while other cities strived to achieve integration between public transport modes in order to reduce private vehicles usage.
“Hong Kong was ranked first according to the UITP Urban Mobility Index, where public transport is the main public transit mode. The Hong Kong public transport system is characterized by its low carbon emissions, compared to pollution rates in the United States of more than 5,000 kg per capita, 2,000 kg per capita in Japan, just over 1000 kg per capita in London, and just under 1000 kg in Amsterdam, Copenhagen and Hong Kong,” added Mr. Cheung
Mr. Cheung highlighted the importance of investment in urban mobility infrastructure, and the need to reshape the political agenda to make a paradigm shift in public practices and sustainability, besides creating integration between mass transport modes to provide premium services to customers. He also pointed out to the integration between transport and land usage by constructing residential and office complexes above and near metro stations, besides adopting the principle of transit-oriented real estate development, and increasing urban density around mass transit stations.
Winners Felicitated
His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, accompanied by His Excellency Mattar Al Tayer, then awarded the winners of various categories. The Dubai Electricity & Water Authority (DEWA) emerged as the winner of the Mobility Management category for an initiative of lifting employees on mass transit buses, which contributed to reducing the use of private vehicles, and encouraging individuals to use public transport means. The initiative has also succeeded in curbing traffic accident hazards in a vital place such as power generation plants, reducing carbon emissions to the equivalence of growing 30 thousand trees, and easing the traffic on Dubai roads by as much as 7740 vehicles per month.
The Department of Transport (DOT) in Abu Dhabi was the runner-up for launching Abu Dhabi Transportation Mobility Management Implementation Program in Jan 2014 in continuation of the Mobility Movement Management initiative rolled out by the DOT in 2011. The program is considered one of the most comprehensive projects of its kind worldwide, and sets out ambitious objectives for realizing long-term results for Abu Dhabi residents, employees and visitors. It is a combination of procedures designed to reshape & affect the daily mobility patterns of people, while focusing on promoting & supporting the sustainable mobility options for final users with a view to reducing reliance on private vehicles. ETA ASCON Group finished third for an initiative entitled: Transport Excellence. Al-Murjan Kindergarten was the winner in the category of Transport Safety for an initiative entitled (The safety of Al-Murjan blooms an ultimate goal of all). Kids were trained on etiquettes of traffic, safety rules when boarding the bus, seating in the bus and observing no standing, no playing during the journey, and conducting properly with bus attendants. Al Otaiba General Transport LLC came second in this category for an initiative named: Road Hazard Control through Buses and Drivers. The Emirates Authority for Standardization and Metrology was third for an initiative to raise the safety of buses lifting less than 22 riders through compliance with additional requirements such as fitting seats with head cushions, fitting all vehicles with ABS braking systems, prohibiting the placing of extra seats in the isle, observing a distance of at least 300 millimeters between seats, and fitting buses with less than 22 seats with RTA-approved speed limiters conforming to the requirements of the UAE model.
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