With a total cost of AED 37 Mn and capacity up to 62 buses per hour

Abu Dhabi on Thursday, January 21st, 2016 - The Department of Transport (DoT) in Abu Dhabi announced today that His Highness Sheikh Tahnoon bin Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Nahyan, Ruler's Representative in the Eastern Region inaugurated Al Ain Central Bus Station in the presence of a group of the Emirate's senior officials. His Highness the Ruler's Representative and the attending senior officials were escorted in a tour to explore the new station facilities and daily operations, and were briefed in details about the station's capacity and scope of services provided to the public.

The Department of Transport has recently completed the construction of the station according to the highest standards of quality and operational efficiency in order to enhance the public transport system and encourage Al Ain residents and visitors to use public transportation. The DoT has ensured that the station architecture blends with its surrounding nature to reflect the cultural and architectural heritage of the city of Al Ain in an urbane style. Therefore, the station was constructed as an architectural interpretation of the Arabic tent with natural colors that reflect the general landscape of Al Ain Oasis. Moreover, the height of the station's roof was designed to be lower than the palm trees surrounding the area. 

The new bus station, whose construction project costed a total of 37 million dirhams, is designed with a capacity that covers the current fleet of buses along with any potential increase in the size of buses. The new and advanced station is divided into two main sections, namely the building section that houses administrative offices, passengers' waiting hall, praying area and shops, and the parking section which includes parking bays for buses and staff vehicles along with a dedicated zone for passengers to hire taxis. The new station's site was meticulously selected to allow smooth access and use by the passengers, and to enhance the downtown surrounding area by providing a stylish image of public transport.

The newly inaugurated bus station has a total capacity of 62 buses per hour, distributed among buses working between cities, and local bus routes connecting the Al Ain to its suburbs. When constructing the station, the DoT has applied sustainable methods to reduce energy consumption and create environment friendly facilities. Among the most important sustainable methods is the station roof, which is designed with a double cloth fabric to cover the waiting area hall. This special fabric contains a layer of "Nanogel" that allows natural sunlight to enter, while blocking sun heat. This technology leads to reducing electricity needed to power air conditioning and therefore reducing the operational cost of the station.

The DoT has also designed many unique facilities such as interactive information dashboards and signage to provide a comfortable experience for bus passengers and to encourage them to use public buses as a preferable mode of transport in its effort to promote public transportation and ensure smooth flow of traffic in the city of Al Ain.

Operating Al Ain new station came after extensive study carried out by the Department of Transport on bus routes and services in the city in order to meet the current and future requirements of public transport users. It is important to note that the DoT participated with Al Ain bus station project in the Middle East and Africa Interior Design and Architecture Award in 2015 for the best government building / facility of the year. The project was successfully shortlisted among the top three candidates among seventeen government projects.

-Ends- 

About the Department of Transport (DoT) in Abu Dhabi:
The Department of Transport ("DoT") was established pursuant to Law No. 4 of year 2006, amended by Law No. 5 of year 2008 to cover the entire value chain and ensure fully coordinated planning in all aspects of transport policy and development in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi in cooperation with all relevant local, regional and international stakeholders and partners.

For more information or inquiries, please contact:
Nasser Al Bahri
Public Relations & Communications Specialist
Department of Transport
T: +971-2-656-6320
Email: nasser.albahri@dot.abudhabi.ae    

Aya Sakoury
PR & Communications Officer
Department of Transport
T: +971-2-656-7094
Email: aya.flm@dot.abudhabi.ae

© Press Release 2016