Free bus services announced in Abu Dhabi

A new "Park & Ride" service will allow individuals to park their vehicles in dedicated parking spaces in the suburbs of Abu Dhabi island and use public buses to travel to different areas inside Abu Dhabi City for free.

The Integrated Transport Centre (ITC) of the Department of Municipalities and Transport (DMT) in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday announced that the public would be able to take advantage of its latest offering starting January 2, 2021.

The service coincides with the launch of "Darb" — the Abu Dhabi Toll Gate System. The initiative aims to vary the travelling options available, offer alternative means of transport, enhance the smoothness of traffic flow, and reduce the number of vehicles used — which will consequently reduce the parking demand. This is in addition to encouraging the use of public buses as an alternative transport option.

With the launch of this service, ITC will implement a number of free facilities for vehicle parking and bus departure points in areas surrounding Abu Dhabi Island. Specifically, 500 parking spaces will be offered in Mohammed bin Zayed City and 500 parking spaces will be offered in Al Shahama.

ITC will offer two services as part of Park & Ride: Service no. 104 and 411. The first will depart from Al Huwaim Street in Mohammed bin Zayed City to Abu Dhabi Main Bus Station in Sultan bin Zayed Al Nahyan Street, Al Wahda Mall in Hazza bin Zayed Street, Etisalat building in Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Street and Qaser Al Hosn in the intersection between Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Street and Khalifa Street. The trip is 50 minutes.

Service no. 411 will depart from Shahama F1 Assembly point to Abu Dhabi Main Bus station in Sultan bin Zayed Al Nahyan Street, Maryam bint Saeed Mosque parking in Sultan bin Zayed Street in Al Dana, Abu Dhabi Central Post Office parking spaces in the same area and in the intersection between Sheikh Khalifa and Sultan bin Zayed Street in Al Dana. The trip is 50 minutes.

The services will operate from Saturday to Thursday from 6am to 9pm. The frequency of the service is 20 minutes during peak hours (6-9am and 4-9pm) and every 60 minutes during off-peak hours in each direction.

Every day, 58 trips will be conducted within Park & Ride service, ITC said, noting that physical distancing will be followed and only 24 seats will be available in each bus.

Drivers can easily obtain the service card for a maximum of three, for the driver and two passengers in the same vehicle, from the parking spaces area. The card is valid for one day only and can be used unlimitedly within the same day of issuance in Abu Dhabi. The cards will not be sold on the buses, and the fine for travelling without the card is Dh200.

During the first phase of launching the service, ITC will study the demand and assess the service in order to find the best solutions to improve it in the future.