By Sajila Saseendran  www.khaleejtimes.com
More than 2500 employees and officials of Dubai Municipality, Dubai Land Department, Dubai Chamber of Commerce and etisalat office in Dubai ditched their cars today.
Director General of DM Hussain Nasser Lootah led the initiative by travelling on the Metro from Rashidiya Station to Union Station adjacent to the Municipality headquarters. Hundreds of DM employees and senior officials joined him during the ride to observe the second Car Free Day in Dubai. Many others took buses to get to work.
Several customers of the Municipality also used different modes of public transport when they came for transactions at the headquarters. All the parking lots in the DM headquarters remained closed for the day.
Lootah and senior officials planted a tree to commemorate the day in a symbolic way. An exhibition of eco-friendly vehicles was also organised as part of the initiative aimed at reducing the air pollution caused by vehicle emission. Transport sector contributes to 42 per cent of the air pollution in the emirate and each vehicle generates 110 to 250 gramme of carbon dioxide per kilometre.
The Car Free Day initiative was launched last year to encourage the local community to care for their city’s environment the best way by reducing the number of vehicles on the roads and also to raise awareness on alternative means of transport.
