Mahboub is here to answer your transportation queries

dubai — Do you want to know how to acquire a driver’s licence or renew your vehicle registration in Dubai? Or, are you planning your commute from home to the mall or any other city destination? Then, ask Mahboub.

Mahboub, an Arabic male name which means “the liked good” in English, is the newly-launched chatbot or virtual assistant of the Roads and Transport Authority.

Mahboub can communicate in both Arabic and English, simulating how an RTA human customer service agent would behave as a conversational partner when asked for relevant information.

Just log on to www.rta.ae and Mahboub can answer your questions. Before beginning a conversation the chatbot would ask first your contact information — name, mobile and email.

Mahboub uses natural language processing systems but would require you to be more specific in your questions — for example when asking for Metro timings, Mahboub would ask if it’s Red or Green Line and from which station you are headed. With the correct input, Mahboub would provide details, in a wink of an eye.