Abu Dhabi: Over 3.4 million vehicles used Darb toll gates during peak hours last year

More than 3.4 million vehicles passed through the Abu Dhabi toll gate system (Darb) during peak hours in 2021, representing 22.5 per cent of the total number of movements which stood at more than 15 million, the Integrated Transport Centre (ITC) has announced.

The ITC said a satisfaction rate of 99 per cent was registered by "Darb" service users in 2021.

The ITC launched the Abu Dhabi “Darb” Toll Gate System in 2021, enabling vehicle owners to register, create accounts easily and add credit to their wallet using the Darb website or the Darb app, available on the Apple Store, Google Play, and AppGallery.

According to the ITC's annual report issued on Sunday evening, 64 million passengers used taxis in 2021, taking 36 million trips in 6,390 vehicles from eight operating companies. This is an increase of 14 per cent over the trips made in the previous year.

Meanwhile, as part of its quest to reduce carbon emissions, ITC announced that the number of low-carbon emission vehicles operating as taxis in the Emirate reached 4,671.

Developing smart transport services

In 2021, Abu Dhabi witnessed a major turning point in smart transport solutions represented by the launch of phase one of operations for the Emirate's first electric self-driving taxi, on Abu Dhabi's Yas Island, under the brand name "TXAI."

The initial phase consisted of 5 smart vehicles and included nine stops at different locations on Yas Island, creating a strong foundation for the route to adopting smart transportation in the Emirate. During the trial phase, community members could use this service free of charge through the "TXAI" app, available viaGoogle Play and the Apple Store.

The first phase of the self-driving vehicles attracted the interest of 2,700 passengers who booked and tried the service. The test vehicles have driven 16,600 km in self-driving mode.

The second phase of the initiative involves increasing passenger numbers by operating more than ten smart vehicles in different locations in Abu Dhabi. ITC noted that there were no traffic accidents or complaints recorded regarding passenger safety during the first phase of the initiative.

Improving public bus services

ITC also added 49 new buses to its fleet in 2021, which increased the overall fleet of public transport buses in the Emirate to 818; 583 of which operate in Abu Dhabi city, 165 in Al Ain city, and 70 in Al Dhafrah region. The entire fleet is equipped with state-of-the-art technologies with fuel efficiency and environmentally sustainable specifications.

Also, in 2021, ITC reactivated operations of 3 intercity bus services between Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, Liwa, and Al Ruwais on a route network of 645 kilometres, which had been temporarily postponed due to Covid.

ITC revealed that the number of bus passenger trips in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi increased by 27 per cent to 53.3 million passenger trips.

ismail@khaleejtimes.com