The Roads and Transport Authority has completed the construction of two rest areas in Al Barsha.
The Roads and Transport Authority has completed the construction of two rest areas in Al Barsha.
The Roads and Transport Authority has completed the construction of two rest areas in Al Barsha.
The Roads and Transport Authority has completed the construction of two rest areas in Al Barsha.

UAE

Transport

Dubai to build 40 air-conditioned rest areas for delivery riders

Sites will include snack dispensers, water coolers and mobile phone charging stations

The National

November 05, 2023

  • English
  • Arabic

Dubai is to build 40 air-conditioned rest areas for delivery riders across the city.

The Roads and Transport Authority said the sites would include a snack dispenser, water cooler and mobile phone charging station.

Depending on the location, the rest area will be able to accommodate up to 10 people and will have parking spaces for motorcycles.

The outside of the rest areas has been designed to reduce the effect of sunlight.

The initiative aims to improve road safety and offer riders somewhere to relax in comfort while waiting for orders, the authority said.

The rest areas will be in Arabian Ranches, International City, Business Bay, Al Quoz, Al Karama, Al Satwa, Al Jaddaf, and Mirdif, as well as other districts in the emirate.

The authority has completed the construction of two rest areas in Al Barsha and the remaining sites are scheduled to be built in three phases.

All rest areas are expected to be completed by July next year.

“The construction of these rest areas is part of the RTA’s efforts to provide a proper working environment for delivery riders, given the substantial growth of the delivery business in recent years to meet the public demand for goods," said Mattar Al Tayer, director general of the authority.

“The selection of rest area locations for delivery riders is based on a thorough analysis of operational data and the identification of the highest demand areas, in co-ordination with delivery companies.

"This initiative stems from the RTA’s efforts to regulate and enhance the safety of the delivery sector, which has seen huge growth in recent years.

"The number of companies offering motorcycle delivery services in Dubai grew to 2,891 in 2022, which represents a 40% increase compared to the previous year."

In March, the authority announced plans to build rest areas for delivery riders on Sheikh Zayed Road, near Festival Plaza at Jebel Ali Village, at Port Saeed next to Al Muraqqabat Street 22, and at Ras Al Khor Industrial Area 2 near Al Manama Street.

In July, Abu Dhabi announced plans to build rest stations for delivery riders that feature air conditioning, seating, water and parking areas.

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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

Timeline

2012-2015

The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East

May 2017

The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts

September 2021

Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act

October 2021

Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence 

December 2024

Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group

May 2025

The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan

July 2025

The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan

August 2025

Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision

October 2025

Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange

November 2025

180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE

 

 

While you're here
While you're here
FIXTURES

All kick-off times 10.45pm UAE ( 4 GMT)

Tuesday
Mairobr v Liverpool
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Manchester City v Napoli
Monaco v Besiktas
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Buy farm-fresh food

The UAE is stepping up its game when it comes to platforms for local farms to show off and sell their produce.

In Dubai, visit Emirati Farmers Souq at The Pointe every Saturday from 8am to 2pm, which has produce from Al Ammar Farm, Omar Al Katri Farm, Hikarivege Vegetables, Rashed Farms and Al Khaleej Honey Trading, among others. 

In Sharjah, the Aljada residential community will launch a new outdoor farmers’ market every Friday starting this weekend. Manbat will be held from 3pm to 8pm, and will host 30 farmers, local home-grown entrepreneurs and food stalls from the teams behind Badia Farms; Emirates Hydroponics Farms; Modern Organic Farm; Revolution Real; Astraea Farms; and Al Khaleej Food. 

In Abu Dhabi, order farm produce from Food Crowd, an online grocery platform that supplies fresh and organic ingredients directly from farms such as Emirates Bio Farm, TFC, Armela Farms and mother company Al Dahra. 

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Updated: November 05, 2023, 10:42 AM
Dubai