Steering in the right direction
Be transported back in history and all its landmarks with a drive to Dubai’s new transport museum
I remember when we could just walk across the creek holding up our kandura Abdulla Al Madani chief executive, Corporate Technical Support Services Sector
Stuck in a traffic jam in Dubai Marina or the Sheikh Zayed Road, many a motorist must wonder if they could do a better job when it comes to road planning.
Well, now they can try. At least in theory – one of the attractions at the city’s new Roads and Transport Authority Museum is a video game that simulates the challenges involved in keeping things moving.
Visitors are welcomed by a cartoon animation of an RTA official, encouraging them to play the “RTA City Planner Game”, a Sim City-style game designed to test their ability to build different transport networks that meet the growing demands of a modern city.
“There are limited funds and there is the carbon level to keep in mind, as well as the commute time,” says Abdulla Al Madani, the chief executive of the Corporate Technical Support Service Sector, on a tour of the museum, which officially opened just before the new year at the RTA headquarters in Umm Ramool. The RTA is now 10 years old and, says Mr Al Madani, “this museum will serve as an archive of all of its projects as we progress through. “You learn how far we have gone in our development and infrastructure as you walk around the museum.”
Entrance is free, but visitors must book. The experience begins with the logos and mottos of the RTA projected on to a vapour display. Beyond the wall of mist is a series of displays showing the development of transport in the emirate. These include the 1975 Ultimate punch ticket machine used on early public buses, and a series of vehicle number plates and driving licences that show the progression of the different Arabic fonts that spelt Dubai.
Another display shows tools relating to old marine transport and a model of one of the first motorised vehicles in Dubai, a Land Rover from 1931.
“I have lots of memories sitting next to my father as he drove this car,” says Mr Al Madani. “It was a tough car that you could drive anywhere, and so it competed with the camels, and was known as the mechanical ship of the desert.”
A series of plaques highlights important landmarks, including the time when British influence meant drivers drove on the lefthand side of the road. It took the intervention of Dubai Municipality to bring about a switch. The museum also features plaques highlighting important events, such as how people once drove here.
“We drove here like the British in the UK,” says Mr Al Madani, pointing to the copy of the law on one plaque, dated August 15, 1966, which reads “Important notice: change in the rule of the road from left to right in the Trucial States.”
The drivers, who were fortunately relatively few in those days, had until September 1 of the same year to get used to this new way of driving, “or will be fined by police”.
The Dubai road rule was signed by Kamal Hamzah, one of the longest-serving directors of the municipality, who held office between 1961 and 1985.
Before then, in the 1950s, the only roads were just “dusty paths of crisscrossed routes worn into form by ladened donkeys and camels”, according to a plaque in the museum.
By the start of the 1960s the first asphalt paved roads were being laid down: Al Seef road along Dubai Creek, and then roads between Dubai, Sharjah, Ras Al Khaimah and Abu Dhabi.
Red lines on the floor give the feel of a Metro station, with stops to show all the different aspects of the RTA, including a screening room with three screens showing a 20- minute documentary in Arabic and English. It begins with old film of cars and buses bouncing along dirt tracks and ends with the modern transport network we see today.
The museum also looks to the future of the RTA with designs for metro stations and the new Dubai Water Canal, currently under construction. It offers a science-fiction glimpse of what may still be to come, including flying vehicles.
As the museum points out, traffic in Dubai increases by 13 per cent every year, compared to just 2 or 3 per cent in European cities. At the same time, public transport use is less than 6 per cent, whereas in advanced countries it is typically between 40 and 80 per cent. In terms of time wasted in traffic, this costs Dubai up to Dh4.6 billion every year.
“The RTA is constantly looking into how to deal with this challenge,” Mr Al Madani says.
At a section devoted to important landmarks, he stops at a black-and-white photograph of the Al Maktoum bridge when it opened in 1963.
“This was the first bridge built in Dubai, and I remember that before that, we could just walk across the creek holding up our kandura,” he says. “They dug and made the water deeper there so dhows and ships can dock closer. And you see them today docked right across the souqs in Deira and Bur Dubai.” The bridge was followed by the Shindagha tunnel, which opened in 1975 and the Garhoud bridge in 1976, which was later expanded in 2008.
One of the busiest years was 2007, when the floating bridge – to reduce pressure on Al Maktoum Bridge – and the Business Bay crossing opened, and the RTA launched the electronic road toll system Salik, which means “clear and moving”.
Dubai Metro gets its own hall, beginning with the opening of the Red Line on September 9, 2009 and the Green Line two years later.
“At 75 kilometres, the Dubai Metro is the world’s longest driverless, fully automated metro rail network,” visitors are informed.
The story of transport in Dubai is far from over, of course. There is talk of making the transport planning video game into an app for schools. Mr Al Madani says that apps now form a big part of the services provided by the RTA for the public. “We are moving towards a Smart City that will help with the expansion and population growth expected,” he says.
There are already 10 smart services available, including instant information about traffic movement, parking spots and the “Smart Taxi”, which will book and track your ride.
Using the Salik smart app, drivers can check and top up their balance and check trips. The Drivers and Vehicles app allows drivers to view licences, registration cards and plate certificates through their traffic file.
All this means that as the RTA constantly changes and expands, so must its museum.
Tours can be booked by calling 04 290 3617/3635 or by registering online at www.rta.ae/wpsv5/wps/ portal/rta/ae/aboutrta/ dubai-transport-museum/