Dubai gets 50 new Metro trains

dubai — Dubai Metro’s 50 brand new trains have arrived in the emirate, the public transport chief announced on Saturday, promising a more comfortable ride for the city’s commuters soon.

Fifteen of these trains are designated for Expo 2020, while the rest are meant to improve the service of the existing Dubai Metro.

Mattar Mohammed Al Tayer, director-general and chairman of the board of executive directors of the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), said “extensive improvements” have been introduced to the trains’ interiors to make them more spacious.

Seats have been redistributed in the new design, increasing the capacity of each train by eight per cent, from 643 riders to 696 riders, Al Tayer added. “Seats are transversal in the Gold cabin and longitudinal in both the Silver and the women and children’s cabins.”

The design of the luggage compartment has also been revamped to expand the space for standing commuters.

“Other improvements include new designs for grab handles and lighting, and the use of new digital advertisement displays. An illuminated dynamic line map will be used to indicate the Metro route and stations, and the lighting will be using powersaving LED technology,” Al Tayer explained.

Some configurations have also been done to make the carriages more accessible to people of determination. Seats were redistributed on the two sides of the train and the gangway between carriages has been widened.

The exterior shape of the Metro, however, was left unchanged to maintain its design identity, Al Tayer said.

The new trains have been deployed at the Dubai Metro Depots in Al Rashidiya and Jebel Ali. The RTA is currently conducting operational tests for the trains on the Route 2020 of the Dubai Metro Red Line.