DUBAI | Public Transport

[forrestcat]

The amazing development of Dubai's public transport shows that despite being blessed with so much oil..their leaders at least have some foresight to prepare for the future..unlike the silly Americans and their car centric cities.

I hope the future MRT in Kuala Lumpur will reflect that of Dubai's metro system!!

[dumbfword]

Originally Posted by forrestcat

The amazing development of Dubai's public transport shows that despite being blessed with so much oil..their leaders at least have some foresight to prepare for the future..unlike the silly Americans and their car centric cities.

I hope the future MRT in Kuala Lumpur will reflect that of Dubai's metro system!!

Lots of cities in the states have major rail programs going. Might be better to research next time before pulling stuff out of thin air. btw. what metro system does Kuala Lumpur have?

[forrestcat]

Originally Posted by dumbfword

Lots of cities in the states have major rail programs going. Might be better to research next time before pulling stuff out of thin air. btw. what metro system does Kuala Lumpur have?

Their cities are generally car centric and their transit system is nowehere near as good as even China nowadays. Reality actually is hard to bite.

Kuala Lumpur has a hodgepodge of public transit such as heavy commuter rails, light rail transits(like MRT but our coaches are abit smaller to be considered MRT), monorail and of course buses which all part of an multi-modal system.Pretty decent system but is reaching capacity.

Our government will embark on a massive MRT project next year to cover more areas of Greater Kuala Lumpur as the city's population will hit 10 million in the next decade from the current 7 milion in its greater metro area. One LRT station just opened 1 km from my house last Friday, the extension of the current LRT lines are in progress while the heavy commuter rail will receive new longer trains by next year and an electrified intercity line between KL and two major Malaysian cities, Penang and Johor Bharu will be finished by 2015.So KL's metro system is slowly expanding even beyond its borders.
More info here: http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showth...027581&page=26

[Ashis Mitra]

What is the current status of Dubai Tram? I read in some sites that it is under construction, is it true?

[dumbfword]

Originally Posted by forrestcat

Their cities are generally car centric and their transit system is nowehere near as good as even China nowadays. Reality actually is hard to bite.

[LoverOfDubai]

Dumbfword, what Forrestcat says is definitely true. While there are a few locations throughout the United States that have good public transit, the vast majority of the United States is very auto-centric (and the US transit systems are nothing compared to those in Europe and East Asia).


Ashis Mitra, if you are referring to Al Sufouh Tram, there are some recent reports of construction work having recently started again. Here is the Dubai tram forum: http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=523593

[philvia]

Originally Posted by LoverOfDubai

Dumbfword, what Forrestcat says is definitely true. While there are a few locations throughout the United States that have good public transit, the vast majority of the United States is very auto-centric (and the US transit systems are nothing compared to those in Europe and East Asia).

and the vast majority of middle eastern and asian cities are very camel or motorbike centric

you fanboys ruin the forum.

[Ultramatic]

So very true.

[forrestcat]

Originally Posted by philvia

and the vast majority of middle eastern and asian cities are very camel or motorbike centric

you fanboys ruin the forum.

yes.Asians still live on trees....,Mao still rule China and the US dollar is mightier than ever. Americans dreams indeed.We are not ashamed of our motorcycles. It's more eco friendly. At least we dun take the stupid SUV just to buy a loaf of bread.

Happy? Get back to topic now..Dubai is just awesome.

Gone are the days when Arabs are the bad guys in Spielberg movies. Now the Arabs build world class cities and continue to be the main energy source to the Europeans and Americans..but wait..they'll earn more selling to the Chinese.

[dumbfword]

Originally Posted by forrestcat

yes.Asians still live on trees....,Mao still rule China and the US dollar is mightier than ever. Americans dreams indeed.We are not ashamed of our motorcycles. It's more eco friendly. At least we dun take the stupid SUV just to buy a loaf of bread.

Happy? Get back to topic now..Dubai is just awesome.

Gone are the days when Arabs are the bad guys in Spielberg movies. Now the Arabs build world class cities and continue to be the main energy source to the Europeans and Americans..but wait..they'll earn more selling to the Chinese.

wow. you say get back to topic and go even more off topic. You should create a blog to air personal problems with the USA instead of derailing metro threads. btw, besides munich(true story) which other spielberg has arabs as bad guys? Send me a pm about. No more reason for you to derail another thread.

[Bobdreamz]

Originally Posted by forrestcat

The amazing development of Dubai's public transport shows that despite being blessed with so much oil..their leaders at least have some foresight to prepare for the future..unlike the silly Americans and their car centric cities.

I hope the future MRT in Kuala Lumpur will reflect that of Dubai's metro system!!

So you pick a thread about Dubai's transit to complain about America & it's citizens? America has auto centric cities because their personal wealth allowed them to buy private cars since the beginning of the 20th. century and a lot of space which led to a development pattern in the US that didn't confine people to crowded cities anymore.
The US has a lot of cities with decent mass transit and some cities with low densities it makes no sense to build a subway or some other rail system.
What the hell does Spielberg movies have to do with anything anyways?
You have some serious issues with your rant about the US. Next thing you know you will be complaining about Americans and their big houses!

[Dan78]

Originally Posted by forrestcat

The amazing development of Dubai's public transport shows that despite being blessed with so much oil..their leaders at least have some foresight to prepare for the future..unlike the silly Americans and their car centric cities.

Just to go wildly off-topic here for a minute:

American cities are car-centric for a variety of reasons:
1) Vast amounts of undeveloped land, even today. Most of Europe and East Asia are already "maxed out" in terms of room for development, unless they want to start eating into their national parks and limited farmland. The Middle East has a lot of undeveloped land, but most of it's desert.
2) Laws against density (minimum setback requirements, minimum lot size requirements, zoning laws prohibiting neighborhood stores).
3) Bank lending practices that favor the suburban model (decentralized, sprawl-y, "pod-type" land use--mixed use is seen as risky). "Greenfield" development is seen as the safest "bet".
4) Low gas (petrol) prices. Very low fuel taxes. A massively subsidized interstate highway system (largely with no tolls).
5) Cultural shifts post 1940's--dense cities were seen as dirty, run-down, and undesirable. People left (those who could, anyway), and cities became more so--a self-fulfilling prophecy. Cities acquired the stigma of being for poor people, new immigrants, and downtrodden minority groups. Sprawl-y suburban development was touted as the ideal. The negative externalities were not considered.
6) Public transportation also acquired the same stigma as did the inner cities in general. It became seen as something for the underclass, and to be avoided. Nobody had much interest in it, so none was built, as a result, the only form of transportation left in many areas was the car, so more sprawl was built...another self-fulfilling prophecy.

Are Americans being "silly" here? At the individual level... NO, not yet anyway. The car/sprawl/highway model is highly subsidized at many levels. Roads are free at the point of use. The U.S. Dollar being the world's reserve currency (for now), we have access to cheap petroleum. Despite American complaints about the price of gas (petrol), it's very cheap here. Real estate is affordable to most if you are willing to "drive until you qualify". People are actually acting rationally from a personal point of view.

Of course, from a national point of view, this is a disaster. The U.S. is in a poor position to weather higher fuel costs...our whole system is based on cheap energy from fossil fuels. But vested interests in our government here are determined that the current model will stay dominant. The hysterical shrieking about "socialism" or "government interference" when high-speed rail, new subways, new light rail, or even bus service is discussed is a testament to that! The real estate, auto, highway, and oil industries like things the way they are now, and their determined to keep them that way as long as possible.

[LoverOfDubai]

332m passengers used public transport last year

Daily riders in 2010 was 957,000 compared to 800,000 in 2009



Staff Report
Published 30 January 2011

Dubai: Public transportation in Dubai comprising of Dubai Metro, public buses, marine transit and taxis, have transported more than 332 million passengers in 2010, compared to 288.777 million passengers in 2009.

According to latest statistics by the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) the average number of daily riders in 2010 was about 957,000 persons compared to 800,000 persons in 2009.

"This number is likely to increase with the completion of the remaining metro stations on the Red Line, and the operation of the Green Line; which will be completed on schedule in August 2011," said Mattar Al Tayer, Chairman of the Board and Executive Director of the (RTA).

"Targeting to realise multi-modal integration of mass transit systems as envisaged in the RTA strategic plan; which is aligned with the Dubai Strategic Plan [Infrastructure Sector] aimed at providing an integrated road and transport system that ensures smooth traffic flow and the highest levels of safety for all system users. RTA is making expeditious efforts to make the public transport means the ideal mobility choice for people in the Emirate," Al Tayer said.

Curtailing drivers

"This will also achieve one of the strategic objectives of the RTA ... curtailing the use of private vehicles, and raising the use of public transport means from 6 per cent in 2009 to 30 per cent in 2020," said Al Tayer noting that last year's public transport share was about 11 per cent. "The number of public bus users in 2010 clocked 113 million passengers with a daily ridership of about 314,000 passengers. The number of passengers using marine transit means, comprising [of] abras and the water bus, was about 15.35 million passengers..."

"The Dubai Metro has lifted about 38.888 million passengers in 2010 and the average daily rider-ship of the metro is currently hovering around 149,000 passengers and this number is poised to increase with the opening of the remaining metro stations on the Red Line..."

http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/uae/tr...-year-1.754154

[nazrey]

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http://www.flickr.com/photos/philurwin/5495043267/
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http://www.flickr.com/photos/alexand...rt/5493401369/
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http://www.flickr.com/photos/amunizdelgado/5346634975/

[nazrey]

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http://www.flickr.com/photos/varlamov/5261284699/
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http://www.flickr.com/photos/varlamov/5261893290/
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http://www.flickr.com/photos/mikesworld/5365270473/
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http://www.flickr.com/photos/53138395@N07/5306280515/

[nazrey]

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http://www.flickr.com/photos/stewie1980/5215300364/
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http://www.flickr.com/photos/vakantiepanel/5198506338/
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http://www.flickr.com/photos/37387749@N02/5182145416/
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http://www.flickr.com/photos/8745081@N04/5425081185/

[nazrey]

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Dubai Metro station by emrank, on Flickr

[nazrey]

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http://www.flickr.com/photos/niyasudheen/5795600484/
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http://www.flickr.com/photos/niyasudheen/5795601550/
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http://www.flickr.com/photos/niyasud...n/photostream/

[nazrey]

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IMG_0234 by ThomStoodley, on Flickr

[diablo234]

Originally Posted by forrestcat

yes.Asians still live on trees....,Mao still rule China and the US dollar is mightier than ever. Americans dreams indeed.We are not ashamed of our motorcycles. It's more eco friendly. At least we dun take the stupid SUV just to buy a loaf of bread.

Happy? Get back to topic now..Dubai is just awesome.

Gone are the days when Arabs are the bad guys in Spielberg movies. Now the Arabs build world class cities and continue to be the main energy source to the Europeans and Americans..but wait..they'll earn more selling to the Chinese.

Dubai is just as autocentric as most US cities. You might want to actually do some research instead of just pulling facts out of your ass.