Public transport saves your pocket and environment
dubai — In the run-up to Car-Free Day on Sunday, Khaleej Times has conducted a case study comparing the cost and time taken driving a car vs. taking public transport.
Starting point was Rashidiya, from where Rashid Shaikh, IT specialist at Panasonic Marketing Middle East and Africa, drives to his office in Jebel Ali.
Moving at 7.45am, Shaikh took his car, while we took the Metro from Al Rashidiya Metro Station to UAE Exchange Metro Station before getting into an RTA bus to reach his office.
Getting a metro ticket for the trip cost Dh7.50, and with the same ticket, we could use the bus to his office.
“My office is about 10Km away from the last metro station, which is why I prefer to drive straight to office rather than switching between different modes of transport,” said Shaikh.
While the metro trip took us one hour and 10 minutes, and the bus trip took an additional 10 minutes, Shaikh’s trip took 45 minutes. He reached at 8.30am, while we made it at 9.05am.
Calculating the cost of the trip, however, the fuel Shaikh consumes per day cost more than the public transport ticket. The cost difference is more apparent on a monthly basis where Shaikh has to pay for his car instalments and maintenance besides the fuel price.
His monthly expenses going and coming back from office for 22 days a month reaches to Dh1,915, in comparison to taking public transport which will cost Dh330 per day. If he chose to take Shaikh Zayed Road, he will end up paying Dh2,267 per month as Salik Gate expenses will mount to an additional Dh16 per day.
Keerthana Korambeth, who works with Shaikh, uses mass transport via a private bus service that picks her up from her home in Al Nahda Dubai to Jebel Ali. It costs her Dh500 a month.
Environmental benefits
Public transport proved to take more time, but saves your pocket and your environment.
The municipality and environment experts have been urging residents to take public or mass transport to ease Dubai’s intense traffic and reduce carbon emissions that contribute to global warming.
According to municipality figures, each vehicle, with a full tank fuel size of 15 gallons, emits nearly 140kg of carbon dioxide into the air.
Alia Al Harmoudi, Director of the Environment Department at the Dubai Municipality, said when 43,000 vehicles were kept at home during last year’s Car-Free Day on February 21, 125 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions were saved, where the density of carbon monoxide was reduced by 58 per cent, and ozone gas went down at 47.4 per cent.
Besides the benefits, Car-Free Day has helped shift awareness to environment-friendly modes of transportation. Al Harmoudi said there has been much greater interest and awareness about using electric cars and motorbikes.
Officials earlier confirmed that 10 per cent of Dubai government’s vehicle fleets will comprise electric and hybrid vehicles, as instructed by the new Dubai Green Mobility Initiative Committee.
Although I have to face a lot of traffic on way from Sharjah to Dubai, driving takes less time than public transport. Sometimes I carpool with my friends.” Naamah Tawil
Taking the Metro to Dubai Investment Park to get to work is easier, as I avoid traffic and get some time to read a book on the way.” Rhoda Castillo
It is more convenient and saves money and time. With a car, I’ll have to worry about parking, fuel prices and maintenance.” Sunila Hameed