LATEST: Dubai motorists brace for new road tolls and parking fees
Dubai is to increase the cost for drivers to pass through the city's toll gates for the first time, from Dh4 to Dh6 during peak hours.
The emirate's transport authority said the increase would be enforced between 6am to 10am and 4pm to 8pm. Off-peak charges, between 10am and 4pm and from 8pm to 1am will remain at Dh4.
The gates will be free to cross between 1am and 6am. The toll will also be Dh4 on Sundays, excluding public holidays, special occasions or major events.
The decision came days after two more Salik gates opened in Dubai. The variable rates will start at the end of January, and are part of a “comprehensive strategy to enhance traffic flow”, the Roads and Transport Authority said.
The RTA has also increased parking rates, to Dh6 an hour for premium spaces and Dh4 an hour for public spaces during morning and evening peak hours. This will come into effect at the end of March.
The tariffs will remain unchanged during off-peak hours. Parking will be free from 10pm to 8am and on Sundays.
The authority also raised parking charges around event zones to Dh25 an hour. This will be introduced at first around Dubai World Trade Centre in February.
Salik reports Dh822m net profit in 9 months
Salik recorded a nearly 9 per cent rise in its third-quarter profit after tax. Net profit in the three months until the end of September climbed 8.8 per cent annually to Dh277.3 million ($75.5 million), the company said in its filing to the Dubai Financial Market, where its shares trade.
Revenue for the quarter increased 7.3 per cent to Dh546.1 million, with earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (ebitda) jumping 14 per cent to Dh376.7 million.
Toll use revenue rose 5.7 per cent annually to Dh468.4 million, while revenue from fines and penalties in the third quarter rose almost 8 per cent to Dh58.7 million. The number of net violations grew 0.8 per cent to hit about 670,000 during the quarter.
For the first nine months of the year, net profit was up 2.4 per cent annually at Dh822 million, with revenue 6.2 per cent higher at Dh1.64 billion. Toll use revenue grew 5.1 per cent on an annual basis to Dh1.42 billion.
Fines and penalties increased 7.6 per cent to Dh174.8 million, contributing 10.7 per cent to the total revenue during the period, while ebitda leapt nearly 9 per cent to Dh1.12 billion.
Who has lived at The Bishops Avenue?
- George Sainsbury of the supermarket dynasty, sugar magnate William Park Lyle and actress Dame Gracie Fields were residents in the 1930s when the street was only known as ‘Millionaires’ Row’.
- Then came the international super rich, including the last king of Greece, Constantine II, the Sultan of Brunei and Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal who was at one point ranked the third richest person in the world.
- Turkish tycoon Halis Torprak sold his mansion for £50m in 2008 after spending just two days there. The House of Saud sold 10 properties on the road in 2013 for almost £80m.
- Other residents have included Iraqi businessman Nemir Kirdar, singer Ariana Grande, holiday camp impresario Sir Billy Butlin, businessman Asil Nadir, Paul McCartney’s former wife Heather Mills.
Hunting park to luxury living
- Land was originally the Bishop of London's hunting park, hence the name
- The road was laid out in the mid 19th Century, meandering through woodland and farmland
- Its earliest houses at the turn of the 20th Century were substantial detached properties with extensive grounds
The design
The protective shell is covered in solar panels to make use of light and produce energy. This will drastically reduce energy loss.
More than 80 per cent of the energy consumed by the French pavilion will be produced by the sun.
The architecture will control light sources to provide a highly insulated and airtight building.
The forecourt is protected from the sun and the plants will refresh the inner spaces.
A micro water treatment plant will recycle used water to supply the irrigation for the plants and to flush the toilets. This will reduce the pavilion’s need for fresh water by 30 per cent.
Energy-saving equipment will be used for all lighting and projections.
Beyond its use for the expo, the pavilion will be easy to dismantle and reuse the material.
Some elements of the metal frame can be prefabricated in a factory.
From architects to sound technicians and construction companies, a group of experts from 10 companies have created the pavilion.
Work will begin in May; the first stone will be laid in Dubai in the second quarter of 2019.
Construction of the pavilion will take 17 months from May 2019 to September 2020.
Abu Dhabi traffic facts
Drivers in Abu Dhabi spend 10 per cent longer in congested conditions than they would on a free-flowing road
The highest volume of traffic on the roads is found between 7am and 8am on a Sunday.
Travelling before 7am on a Sunday could save up to four hours per year on a 30-minute commute.
The day was the least congestion in Abu Dhabi in 2019 was Tuesday, August 13.
The highest levels of traffic were found on Sunday, November 10.
Drivers in Abu Dhabi lost 41 hours spent in traffic jams in rush hour during 2019
In numbers
1,000 tonnes of waste collected daily:
- 800 tonnes converted into alternative fuel
- 150 tonnes to landfill
- 50 tonnes sold as scrap metal
800 tonnes of RDF replaces 500 tonnes of coal
Two conveyor lines treat more than 350,000 tonnes of waste per year
25 staff on site
