By Staff  www.khaleejtimes.com
Over 900,000 riders are expected to use the Dubai Metro on New Year’s Eve, the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) said on Sunday.
On January 1, the Metro ridership is expected to hit 480,000.
“A comprehensive … plan has been put in place for managing the movement of vehicles and public buses, especially around the Burj Khalifa area,” said Maitha bin Udai, CEO of Traffic and Roads Agency and head of traffic movement and handling of operational plans during annual events team. “The plan includes the provision of extra parking slots, and more feeder buses shuttling round-the-clock until 1am on … January 2, 2016.”
She urged motorists to avoid using the Financial Centre Street and the Mohammed bin Rashid Boulevard after 8pm on December 31, as these streets will be reserved for traffic exiting the place and emergency cases only.
About 5,000 additional parking slots have been provided to support the existing 17,000 slots within the events area. These include 1,500 parking slots at the Dubai Trade Centre; 2,000 at Al Wasl Club; 500 at Al Jafliya; and 1,000 at the Zabeel Park.
About 170 buses will be operating on site to transport people from traffic congestion sites. A crossing point has been designated for the public on the Shaikh Zayed Road near the Burj Khalifa Metro Station, which will be under the control of the Dubai Police.
She urged the public to use the Metro and public transport means rather than private vehicles, especially during the festivities hosted by Dubai such as the New Year’s Eve.
The Burj Khalifa Metro Station will remain closed from 10pm on Thursday, and the public will be directed to the Financial Centre and Business Bay stations, where extra directional signages will be in place. Al Asayel Street stretching from Oud Metha to the Burj Khalifa would be closed, as it would be reserved for RTA buses offering free shuttles from Al Wasl parking to the pick-up and drop-off point at Al Abraj Street. More info
