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Bahrozyan: 1500 riders tried the vehicle, 95% felt safe
Al Khaja: Trade Center seeks to attract best technologies
The Roads and Transport Authority - Majdi Abu Zaid:
The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has unveiled the results of a questionnaire conducted over a month for visitors of the Dubai World Trade Center who experimented a ride of the Driverless Vehicle that has made its debut in the Trade Center before moving on to the Mohammed bin Rashid Boulevard on Sept 1st. The idea of the survey was to screen the views of the largest possible segments of visitors aged 25-35 in several related aspects about their perception of this vehicle. The satisfaction rating of this vehicle and the future plan for deploying it in public transport has reached 92%.
"The RTA has initiated the trial run of the autonomous vehicle at the Dubai World Trade Center before experimenting it at the Mohammed bin Rashid Boulevard in collaboration with Emaar on Sept 1st," said Ahmed Hashim Bahrozan, CEO of Licensing Agency and Head of the Driverless Vehicles Committee, RTA. "The vehicle has lifted visitors to events & entertainment venues in the Trade Center serving more than 1500 riders. The questionnaire, which targeted riders in the age bracket 25-35 years, showed that up to 92% are quite satisfied with the future plan of deploying the vehicle in public transport. About 97% of riders expected the technology to contribute to alleviating vehicle accidents and improving the road safety levels. About 95% of respondents expressed comfort and confidence in the vehicle, and 95% felt safe while on board. About 36% of respondents were users of public transport, 32% have private vehicles, and 32% of them use both public and private transport. About 87% of riders were Emiratis and UAE residents, and 13% were tourists.
"The RTA is considering expanding the use of autonomous vehicles to other parts of Dubai such as the metro stations, malls and tourist areas. It is also working on drafting rules & legislations pertinent to smart mobility in the Emirate to set out well-defined legal structure in line with the strategic directive of Dubai to transform 25% of public transport into smart mobility by 2030. The fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh key aspects of the plan provide for using autonomous vehicles in the first and last mile stage, business centers, residential complexes and parks. It is also compatible with the strategy of Dubai Government for transforming 25% of mobility journeys in Dubai into driverless journeys," added Bahroyzan.
Ahmed Al Khaja, 1st Vice President of the Dubai World Trade Center, said: "We, at the Dubai World Trade Center, are keen on attracting the highest technologies in the world and displaying them to millions visiting our events every year. The Center is a global platform for exhibiting innovations in various fields. Working closely with our partners in the RTA towards implementing this sort of modern initiatives enhances the experience of our visitors and contributes to raising the profile of Dubai in embracing the latest transit means. It also presents Dubai as a smart city hosting cutting-edge technologies in various fields.
"The ongoing cooperation between the Trade Center and the RTA spans several fields highlighted by the attraction of international congresses and exhibitions to Dubai. We are excited with this cooperation which has empowered the Emirate to win the hosting of several key events staged for the first time in Dubai and the region," he further added.
The electric-powered smart vehicle is 100% environment-friendly and can travel up to eight continuous hours. It is designed to move within closed internal roads in areas such as residential districts, entertainment venues and the likes. It boasts of high safety and security standards as it is fitted with four-directional GPS System and uses laser sensors enabling it to spot any object 40 meters away. It can slowdown automatically once it spots an object two meters away. If the object approaches less than two meters, the vehicle comes to a complete halt.
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© Press Release 2016
