Abu Dhabi among least congested cities
INTERNATIONAL TRAFFIC AWARD’S 2016 REPORT RATES EMIRATE BEST AMONG 390 CITIES AT USING INFRASTRUCTURE TO MANAGE TRAFFIC FLOW
N otwithstanding a population of 1.7 million, Abu Dhabi last year had one of the lowest levels of traffic congestion among cities of a similar size, an international traffic index report revealed.
Peak hour travel in Abu Dhabi takes only 14 minutes longer than during non-peak hours, a panel of international traffic experts at the TomTom Awards said at a press conference in the capital yesterday.
There has been a 6 per cent increase in travel time during peak hours this year compared to last year, but traffic experts said this is a natural result of population growth.
In addition, Abu Dhabi was rated the best among 390 cities at using infrastructure to manage its traffic flow in 2016, traffic experts said.
“Abu Dhabi has proven that a highly-planned road system that maximises labour mobility and goods movement can bring efficiency and reduce congestion. In fact, the city has one of the best TomTom Traffic Index congestion levels of any city with a population of more than a million,” the panel said.
The TomTom traffic index ranked 390 cities based on congestion, using data collected from smartphone apps, GPS applications, and from taxi and bus monitoring systems. Only the city of Katowice in Poland had similarly low levels of congestion in the group of metropolises with populations between one and eight million.
“Traffic congestion requires continuous efforts, and an integrated management system that combines infrastructure building, technology use and monitoring. Abu Dhabi looks into all these different elements. I would, however, recommend a greater focus on providing more varied public transportation options,” said Ralf-Peter Schafer, vice-president for traffic and travel information at TomTom.
“We have invested over Dh581 million towards improving traffic management systems in the last few years, and winning this international award is indicative of this great progress,” said Awaidah Al Marar, chairman of the Department of Municipal Affairs and Transport (DMAT), which regulates the municipal and transportation sectors in the emirate.
Much of this investment has been used to install intelligent traffic control systems in the capital. For instance, traffic signals are now monitored smartly through a computerised system that ensures as continuous a flow of traffic as possible.
“The system has been in place for more than a year and a half, and motorists have found that they can keep driving, without having to stop, past six subsequent intersections on average. This is because of the intelligent manner in which the signals are synchronised, compared to the manual system used in the past, and it has reduced delays by about 20 per cent,” Salah Al Marzouqi, director for integrated intelligent transportation systems at the DMAT, told Gulf News on the sidelines of the conference.
Another enhancement has been the rollout of the Darb smartphone app, which allows residents to book taxis, check on real-time bus schedules and stay abreast of traffic incidents and developments. In addition, fare collection systems within the city’s 520 buses were also automated.
“We have earmarked another Dh900 million for further development. A portion of this has been used to set up variable message signboards to manage traffic on the highways, and another portion will be used to enhance the bus network and fleet. We also plan to look into deploying autonomous, ‘driverless’ vehicles,” Al Marzouqi said.
According to officials at the Integrated Transport Centre at the DMAT, Abu Dhabi has reduced annual traffic congestion by 14 per cent in recent years.
“During off-peak times, this waiting period has been reduced by 75 per cent in the city centre, and by up to 97 per cent in other areas,” said Mohammad Al Qamzi, general manager at the Centre.
“In addition, signalised intersections in Mohammad Bin Zayed City have reduced trip times by 10 per cent during the morning peak hours, and 25 per cent at non-peak times.”