Innovative sustainable transport solutions rewarded
FREQUENT USERS OF DUBAI METRO RECOGNISED ALONG WITH COMPANIES AND STUDENTS
Frequent users of public transport in Dubai were among the winners of the seventh Dubai Award for Sustainable Transport (DAST) yesterday. Shaikh Ahmad Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, chairman of the Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Establishment, honoured the winners across six main categories and four sub-categories at a ceremony at Dubai World Trade Centre.
In the six main categories, DP World won in the Mobility Management category, AW Rostamani Kar Transport won in the Transport Safety category, TransAD won in the Environment Protection category, Emirates Transport won In the Special Needs Mobility category, Emirates Authority for Standardisation and Metrology won in the School Transport Category, and Emirates Transport won in the Smart Apps category.
Dr Khawlah Abdullah Saif Al Kaabi won in the Academic Research sub-category.
Mohammad Ali Ahmadzadeh, Mohammad Muneer Abu Baker, Subhash Singh Parmar, Mohammad Ali Al Raisi and Dasnadi Mohammad Ilyas were voted the most frequent public transport users.
Ilyas, who has been working as a salesman in Dubai for 17 years, was thrilled. He told Gulf News that “I never ever thought that I would win an award for using the Metro. I use public transport because it is the best way to move around in Dubai and I thank the government of Dubai for having in place such a nice infrastructure”.
‘My happiest day’
Abu Baker, who has been working in the UAE for 16 years, said: “This is my happiest day. To receive an award from the hands of Shaikh Ahmad Bin Mohammad is an honour. I am really excited and I don’t have words to express my feelings.” Abu Baker works as an outdoor salesman and uses the Metro and buses to travel.
Among the winners were two teams of students from UAE University in Al Ain, who bagged the top two prizes in the Best Student Project category.
A team led by Dr Yasser Al Sheshtawy came up with a proposal to creatively use unused spaces under Metro bridges, which is now being considered by the Roads and Transport Authority.
Abdullah Al Muaini, Director-General of Esma Emirates Standardisation and Metrology Authority that won for countrywide implementation of new school bus specifications, said, “It is nice to get recognition for the work we did in regulating school transport across the country. We have put in place some of the best practices in the world in terms of bus specifications and we are working towards further improving school transport,” said.
‘World-class infrastructure’
The event was kick-started with a keynote address by Ray LaHood, former Secretary of the US Department of Transportation, who hailed Dubai’s effort in promoting sustainable transport and putting in place world-class infrastructure.
DAST has seen significant growth since its inception in 2008.