Archive | February 2014

RTA Dubai announces cash-free fare payment system in Dubai cabs

Feb19

Taxi passengers in Dubai will soon be able to pay their fare with debit and card credits, the Roads and Transport Authority of Dubai (RTA) announced on Wednesday.

The RTA said the scheme would be phased in from this week and will be available in all cabs by the middle of next year. As well as debit and credit cards, passengers will also be able to use their Nol cards.

Dr Yousef Al Ali, CEO of the RTA’s Public Transport Agency, said: “This initiative would indisputably constitute an added value service to public transport commuting in general and to taxi riding in particular.”

“The taxi service sector is witnessing remarkable growth in Dubai, thanks to the increasing demand from the public, representing all social cross sections including residents, tourists and visitors.

“The demand is especially high during peak seasons when Dubai hosts a range of events such as conventions, exhibitions, fairs and other landmark events.”

He added: “Nol Cards and bank credit and debit cards of various types from all around the world can be used to pay the taxi fares to smoothly and easily facilitate payment without thetrouble of finding ATMs, in case cash is not in hand.”

Passengers will be able to use cards, including Visa, MasterCard, JCB, China Union Pay and Diners, through a POS terminal in the taxis.

“The roll out of the new service will eliminate the cash pain point of taxi commuters, who will no longer have to worry about getting back the exact change from the taxi driver,” said Bhairav Trivedi, CEO, Network International.

Increase School Fee in Dubai

Feb17

Schools in Dubai will be able to raise fees by up to 3.48 per cent this year based on the  latest Education Cost Index (ECI)

The Executive Council of Dubai yesterday released the annual index, calculated by the Dubai Statistics Centre. The ECI is affected by the consumer price index and specifically addresses the costs of running a school, including salaries, rent and utilities.

The tuition increase will depend on the performance of the schools.

A spokesperson from the Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) told  in a statement: “Outstanding schools will be eligible for up to a 3.48 per cent raise, good schools are eligible for up to 2.61 per cent and the rest will be granted up to a 1.74 per cent rise.”

The representative said the KHDA has already communicated the change of the ECI to all private schools in Dubai. However, the schools can only raise fees after the Dubai Schools Inspection Bureau (DSIB) results are made public.

Meanwhile, the Executive Council said a framework would be developed to give sch­ools the right to apply to restructure their fees if inflation rates negatively affect the profitability and development of services.

Commenting on the impending increase, Shikha Nambiar, the mum of a six-year-old attending a currently ‘outstanding’ school, told: “I’m upset, but I’m not surprised.

It’s seems to be a norm to increase the fees every year – and there’s a whole list of excuses for it even though the school does nothing extra for the extra money.”

But Clive Pierrepont, the director of communications for education provider Taaleem, said most operators will not see the news as helpful for their future plans and aspirations. He said: “In a period of frozen fees last year and a small increase for the next academic year, costs continue to increase annually, at five to 10 per cent on average. In the past we have tried to absorb these as far as possible by prudent housekeeping and cost review exercises. The announced increase, especially with the added burden of the recent revision of the rent cap in Dubai, is certainly not in line with the financial reality of the situation faced by providers.”

 

Google street views of Dubai to be seen worldwide

Feb13

People across the globe will soon be able to explore panoramic views of the streets of Dubai using Google Maps.

GoogleStreetView

The tech giant confirmed to  that it is bringing its Street View imagery to the emirate, making it the first city in the Middle East to launch the service. Street View, a technology featured in Google Maps and Google Earth, provides 360-degree views of several streets across more than 3,000 cities in over 50 countries. The technology was launched in 2007.

Google also displayed its famous Street View car, used to collect images, at the UAE Government Summit this week.

Peter Barron, director of communications for Google in Europe, Middle East and Africa, who represented Google at the Summit, told  “We brought it to showcase technology and innovation at its best. This car captures 360 panoramic images of streets around the world and the imagery is shared online with more than a billion monthly active users who use Google Maps.”

Rumours of the arrival of the service had been abuzz after pictures of the trekker spotted driving on Dubai roads went viral on Twitter earlier this month. Google’s Street View website also listed Dubai as one of the cities where they were “currently driving”.

Google also confirmed that it pitched plans to the UAE government during the Summit.

“We gave them a lot of different ideas of how we can integrate with smart cities – so things like where we do wireless Internet everywhere as well as Google Maps, indoor and outdoor mapping, more Street View, products like Field Trip. But we haven’t signed anything or agreed to anything yet,” Maha Abouelenein, head of communications for Google in MENA.

Barron believes Maps poses great opportunities for the tourism sector. He added: “Indoor mapping in Dubai is a huge opportunity. Imagine having a map within Dubai Mall.”

Last year, Google took Street View to the top of its very first skyscraper, the world’s tallest manmade structure, the Burj Khalifa. The imagery was collected over three days using the Street View Trekker and Trolley, capturing high-res panoramic images of several indoor and outdoor locations of the building. Google’s view even allows online visitors to see what it feels like to hang off one of the building’s maintenance units on the 80th floor, normally used for cleaning windows.