Metro riders crowd stations

Hundreds of people were turned away from the Dubai Metro after confusion over operating times left potential joy riders grumbling about the lack of information.

Hundreds of people were turned away from the Dubai Metro this morning after confusion over operating times left potential joy riders grumbling about the lack of information. Those who arrived too early were unaware that the trains would not start operating until 2pm, with a sign at Mall of Emirates incorrectly stating when the Red line would open. A steady stream of cars arrived at the Nakheel Harbour and Tower (NHT) Metro station hours before the station opened, and it was a similar story at Al Rashidiya, where they were told to return later. Would-be passengers were also turned away from the Mall of the Emirates station where they had gathered in the morning hoping to ride the rail system that will have cost the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) Dh28billion by next June, when the Green Line opens. Mohammad Muneer, 42, from Syria, planned to spend the early part of the day riding the train and was disappointed by the lack of clear communication about the later opening time. "I didn't know this. There was no information anywhere," he said after he was turned away by a lone Serco employee who was frantically trying to reach somebody on the telephone. "I will have to go back to my apartment in Discovery Gardens." Reema Refai from Lebanon drove to the NHT Station this morning only to find the entrance to the purpose-built car park sectioned off and a Serco employee nowhere to be seen. "The kids are really disappointed," she said. "I knew it was open today but presumed it would be open all day. There was not even anybody here to tell me. I didn't see anything in the papers or hear anything on the radio," the mother of two said before the family returned to her apartment in Jumeirah Lakes Towers.