Dh1,599 sat-nav system to beat Dubai snarl-ups

Dubai's transport authority teams up with a private company to offer motorists a Dh1,599 system that warns of that traffic jam up ahead on Emirates Road.

DUBAI // Motorists will soon be able to avoid traffic snarls by buying a real-time navigation system that will provide alerts about tailbacks and help find a way around them. The Dalili system will be available from October 15, the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) said yesterday.

Dubai-specific information in Arabic and English will also suggest alternative routes. Dalili will be available on the Mio GPS navigation systems at Dh1,599 and purchasers will be able to upgrade the software free of cost for three years via the internet.

"Dalili will show the traffic conditions on the roads so motorists can change their route," said Maitha bin Udai, the chief executive of the RTA Traffic and Roads Agency. "By reducing congestion through directing vehicles to other routes, the system ensures distribution of traffic density on roads."

The new navigation tool will probably have a ready-made audience in the Emirates. About 30,000 of the country's motorists already use Mio, said Marwan Khawaja, the general manager of International Marketing Services, the system's sole distributor in the Middle East.

A trial version of Dalili displayed to the media showed triangular red signs on road maps warning of traffic snarls. Tapping the icons displayed information about traffic conditions and alternative routes that could be taken.

"You can negotiate traffic in two ways, manually on the map or by voice guidance," Mr Khawaja said. "It will inform you about a traffic jam at least 2km to 5km in advance and give you a solution."

He said similar systems are available in the US, Europe, Singapore and Japan. Maps included as part of the system will feature images of landmarks such as the Burj Al Arab, the Burj Khalifa and the Dubai Mall.

The new version will feature 50,000 landmarks, more than double the number currently available to Mio users.

The maps will be updated every three months. The system has taken more than a year to create, with the RTA supplying the data and information and International Marketing Services providing the software and hardware.

Traffic details will be culled from sources including the RTA's taxi probe data, which keeps track of 8,000 taxis plying Dubai roads daily, as well as information from road sensors and cameras across the emirate. The intelligence will be processed by a central server and transmitted via the Noor Dubai 93.9FM and Dubai 92FM radio signals into the navigation system.

"The maps will show roads throughout the UAE but the traffic information will be of Dubai because the system is a dynamic one that is connected to RTA data and control rooms," Ms bin Udai said.

Dalili will be sold at stores including Carrefour, Emax, Sharaf DG Electronics, Jacky's and Costless. Existing Mio and Navman users can upgrade their software with the traffic system information later this year.

The RTA said it was open to partnership with other navigation system companies.

"It's a demand-driven economy and we want everybody to have this," said Peyman Younes Parham, the RTA head of communications. "It's exclusive today but we would never limit it."