Dubai // The delighted drivers might call it the great lurch forward. How else to describe a sudden tripling of minimum taxi fares?
Effective immediately, every taxi ride in Dubai will cost at least Dh10 (US$2.72) as part of a new fare structure announced yesterday. A starting fee of Dh20 has been set for journeys from Dubai to Sharjah.
The meter will always start at the usual Dh3, but any journey that does not reach Dh10 will be rounded up. The Sharjah fee will be charged when the car crosses into the emirate.
Finally, the fee for waiting time will be 50 fils per minute in addition to distance travelled. Previously, the first 10 minutes of the journey did not incur a time-related charge.
The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) outlined the new fees yesterday, confirming a number of changes that had been introduced informally in the past few weeks. Every taxi in Dubai is expected to be fitted with updated meters within the next two weeks. Some taxis are already charging the fees.
The chief executive of the RTA's public transport agency, Essa al Dosari, said the minimum charges were introduced to encourage taxi drivers to stop refusing to pick up passengers for short distances and to make trips to Sharjah.
"To put an end to this phenomenon and encourage the drivers to carry passengers whatever the distance is, the meter will electronically round the amount to be Dh10 per trip," Mr al Dosari said.
Mehmoudi Riadh, from Tunisia, said the fee increase was the wrong way to go about getting taxis to take passengers to Sharjah.
"I live in Sharjah and now this is another extra cost," he said. "It is not good because of the current financial crisis. People need more ways of saving money. I still think it will not convince a taxi to go to Sharjah."
But Gareth Brown from the UK was not as concerned. "I think how often I get a taxi that is less than Dh10 is very rare," he said. "The shortest fare for me is about Dh15, so it does not really affect me."
All taxis operating for the RTA franchise will be introducing the charges, including the Dubai Taxi Corporation's fleet.
"Through this plan, we aim to impact the mechanism of the daily work of cab drivers and uplift their performance since RTA views them as ambassadors in dealing with passengers," Mr al Dosari said.
He added: "Taxi drivers play a vital role in contributing to the advancement of taxi services in Dubai, and they ought to be supported to get an increment in their earnings. The decision will also greatly curb the phenomenon of drivers' refusal to lift passengers. This will accordingly enhance customer satisfaction and address the demand for this service."
Even if the taxi is sitting in traffic, 50 fils will be added every minute to the meter. The public transport agency hopes it will encourage drivers to pick up passengers in congested traffic. Previously, this charge would begin 10 minutes into the journey.
Mr al Dosari said the RTA's marketing and communications department would launch a number of campaigns "to enlighten the public of future benefits of these decisions and the positive effect they will have on upgrading this sector to serve a wide spectrum of the community".
"Since these decisions will result in increasing the averaged income of drivers, it will also encourage them to put more efforts and considerably cut the cases of refusal to lift passengers."
Mr al Dosari said the RTA had also dispatched a delegation of representatives for the public transport agency, Dubai Taxi Corporation and all the franchise companies to Singapore last year to learn about the best practices.
eharnan@thenational.ae
Company Profile
Company name: Namara
Started: June 2022
Founder: Mohammed Alnamara
Based: Dubai
Sector: Microfinance
Current number of staff: 16
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Family offices
UNpaid bills:
Countries with largest unpaid bill for UN budget in 2019
USA – $1.055 billion
Brazil – $143 million
Argentina – $52 million
Mexico – $36 million
Iran – $27 million
Israel – $18 million
Venezuela – $17 million
Korea – $10 million
Countries with largest unpaid bill for UN peacekeeping operations in 2019
USA – $2.38 billion
Brazil – $287 million
Spain – $110 million
France – $103 million
Ukraine – $100 million
'Gehraiyaan'
Director:Shakun Batra
Stars:Deepika Padukone, Siddhant Chaturvedi, Ananya Panday, Dhairya Karwa
Rating: 4/5
About Okadoc
Date started: Okadoc, 2018
Founder/CEO: Fodhil Benturquia
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Healthcare
Size: (employees/revenue) 40 staff; undisclosed revenues recording “double-digit” monthly growth
Funding stage: Series B fundraising round to conclude in February
Investors: Undisclosed
Leap of Faith
Michael J Mazarr
Public Affairs
Dh67
Specs: 2024 McLaren Artura Spider
Engine: 3.0-litre twin-turbo V6 and electric motor
Max power: 700hp at 7,500rpm
Max torque: 720Nm at 2,250rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed dual-clutch auto
0-100km/h: 3.0sec
Top speed: 330kph
Price: From Dh1.14 million ($311,000)
On sale: Now
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Company profile
Company name: Fasset
Started: 2019
Founders: Mohammad Raafi Hossain, Daniel Ahmed
Based: Dubai
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: $2.45 million
Current number of staff: 86
Investment stage: Pre-series B
Investors: Investcorp, Liberty City Ventures, Fatima Gobi Ventures, Primal Capital, Wealthwell Ventures, FHS Capital, VN2 Capital, local family offices
Developer: Ubisoft Montreal / Ubisoft Toronto
Publisher: Ubisoft
Platforms: Playstation 4, Xbox One, Windows
Release Date: April 10
Company profile
Company name: Twig Solutions (with trade name Twig)
Started: 2021
Founders: Chafic Idriss, Karam El Dik and Rayan Antonios
Based: UAE
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: bootstrapped (undisclosed)
Current number of staff: 13
Investment stage: pre-seed — closing the round as we speak
Investors: senior executives from the GCC financial services industry and global family offices
DMZ facts
- The DMZ was created as a buffer after the 1950-53 Korean War.
- It runs 248 kilometers across the Korean Peninsula and is 4km wide.
- The zone is jointly overseen by the US-led United Nations Command and North Korea.
- It is littered with an estimated 2 million mines, tank traps, razor wire fences and guard posts.
- Donald Trump and Kim Jong-Un met at a building in Panmunjom, where an armistice was signed to stop the Korean War.
- Panmunjom is 52km north of the Korean capital Seoul and 147km south of Pyongyang, North Korea’s capital.
- Former US president Bill Clinton visited Panmunjom in 1993, while Ronald Reagan visited the DMZ in 1983, George W. Bush in 2002 and Barack Obama visited a nearby military camp in 2012.
- Mr Trump planned to visit in November 2017, but heavy fog that prevented his helicopter from landing.
How Voiss turns words to speech
The device has a screen reader or software that monitors what happens on the screen
The screen reader sends the text to the speech synthesiser
This converts to audio whatever it receives from screen reader, so the person can hear what is happening on the screen
A VOISS computer costs between $200 and $250 depending on memory card capacity that ranges from 32GB to 128GB
The speech synthesisers VOISS develops are free
Subsequent computer versions will include improvements such as wireless keyboards
Arabic voice in affordable talking computer to be added next year to English, Portuguese, and Spanish synthesiser
Partnerships planned during Expo 2020 Dubai to add more languages
At least 2.2 billion people globally have a vision impairment or blindness
More than 90 per cent live in developing countries
The Long-term aim of VOISS to reach the technology to people in poor countries with workshops that teach them to build their own device
Iftar programme at the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding
Established in 1998, the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding was created with a vision to teach residents about the traditions and customs of the UAE. Its motto is ‘open doors, open minds’. All year-round, visitors can sign up for a traditional Emirati breakfast, lunch or dinner meal, as well as a range of walking tours, including ones to sites such as the Jumeirah Mosque or Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood.
Every year during Ramadan, an iftar programme is rolled out. This allows guests to break their fast with the centre’s presenters, visit a nearby mosque and observe their guides while they pray. These events last for about two hours and are open to the public, or can be booked for a private event.
Until the end of Ramadan, the iftar events take place from 7pm until 9pm, from Saturday to Thursday. Advanced booking is required.
For more details, email openminds@cultures.ae or visit www.cultures.ae
THE SPECS
Engine: 4.4-litre V8
Transmission: Automatic
Power: 530bhp
Torque: 750Nm
Price: Dh535,000
On sale: Now
Company Profile
Name: HyveGeo
Started: 2023
Founders: Abdulaziz bin Redha, Dr Samsurin Welch, Eva Morales and Dr Harjit Singh
Based: Cambridge and Dubai
Number of employees: 8
Industry: Sustainability & Environment
Funding: $200,000 plus undisclosed grant
Investors: Venture capital and government
Winners
Best Men's Player of the Year: Kylian Mbappe (PSG)
Maradona Award for Best Goal Scorer of the Year: Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
TikTok Fans’ Player of the Year: Robert Lewandowski
Top Goal Scorer of All Time: Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)
Best Women's Player of the Year: Alexia Putellas (Barcelona)
Best Men's Club of the Year: Chelsea
Best Women's Club of the Year: Barcelona
Best Defender of the Year: Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus/Italy)
Best Goalkeeper of the Year: Gianluigi Donnarumma (PSG/Italy)
Best Coach of the Year: Roberto Mancini (Italy)
Best National Team of the Year: Italy
Best Agent of the Year: Federico Pastorello
Best Sporting Director of the Year: Txiki Begiristain (Manchester City)
Player Career Award: Ronaldinho
MATCH INFO
AC Milan v Inter, Sunday, 6pm (UAE), match live on BeIN Sports