By SHARMILA DHAL, Senior Reporte XPRESS www.gulfnews.com
Dubai: It’s rush hour on Dubai Metro and commuters are jostling for space in the five cars of a train running from Rashidiya to Jebel Ali.
Suddenly there is a public announcement: “Attention passengers, we are facing a technical problem. We may have to stop the train. But please stay calm. Do not touch any safety devices …”
Passengers are familiar with delays on the Metro caused by minor technical glitches — the last one occurred on September 14, But what if there’s a major emergency?
“We leave nothing to chance,” said Mariam Al Safar, Passenger Service Supervisor, as she shared the procedures and types of evacuation followed by the Metro during an emergency. The automated train goes manual in such situations and 150 drivers or attendants, 80 per cent of whom are women, are pressed into service, Mariam told XPRESS.
Growing confidence
Until now every train had an attendant. But starting this week they will be on alternate trains only. It’s sign of growing confidence in the operations of the Metro which, with one fault for every four million kilometres, boasts one of the world’s lowest train fault rates. More info
