Dubai: RTA increases school bus fleet to 440 for new academic year

Dubai - The move to increase the number of buses aims to encourage parents to switch to school buses rather than private vehicles

The Dubai Taxi Corporation (DTC) of the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has increased the number of school buses it operates to 440 for the upcoming 2021-22 academic year.

The total number of students registered in the school transport service has reached 7,300.

The move to increase the number of buses aims to encourage parents to switch to school buses rather than private vehicles to ferry children.

Mansour Rahma Al Falasi, CEO of the DTC, said: “The DTC has taken extensive Covid measures to ensure the safety of students such as sanitising school buses before and after the boarding of students and limiting the usable seats to 50 per cent of the capacity.

“Through these measures, we intend to comply with the local and global practices of curbing the spread of Covid-19, and ensure that students are well protected.”

The DTC has signed contracts with 22 schools in Dubai.

“The success of the service is also attributed to the careful selection of highly competent drivers and attendants, who are well-trained. They have been qualified in handling emergency cases; certified in first-aid from the Dubai Corporation for Ambulance Services; and attended other training programmes,” said Al Falasi.

DTC-operated buses are fitted with hi-tech devices for monitoring and tracking students. Devices include cameras, sensors to ensure no student is left behind in the bus, an emergency button to communicate with the control centre, a GPS-based electronic tracking system, radio-frequency identification (RFID) system, and an engine self-extinguishing system.

“Through https://schoolbus.dubaitaxi.ae/parentportal, parents can track the movement of the bus and students, and figure out the pick-up and drop-off points,” added Al Falasi.

• Dubai