You don’t need to have been in Dubai for long to realise that traffic is a major talking point.

Dubai traffic is crammed, congested and often frustrating, but the city is well aware of the problems.

In fact, there’s been many changes put in place already this year to make getting around easier with buses, roads and taxis being key points of interest.

Below, we keep you up to date on the major work completed this year and projects which have been announced in 2024.

Dubai traffic: Buses

The RTA has been working on improving the bus service in Dubai with changes to routes, new stations and work underway on dedicated bus lanes. The network currently covers 82 per cent of the urban areas in Dubai and transports more than 360,000 passengers per day.

Stadium Bus Station was opened at the beginning of May in Al Qusais next to the existing Metro station.

Trips have been made quicker on the following lines: 62, X02, X23, X22, X13, X25, X92, X64, X94.

And improvements have been made to the schedules of 30 routes: 19, 23, 27, 43, 62, C04, C10, C15, C18, D03, E102, E307, E400, F08, F17, F22, F23, F23A, F24, F51, W20, X02, X13, X22, X23, X25, X28, X64, X92, X94.

The old 91A route was cancelled.

Dubai traffic: Marine

Whether you ride an abra for the Dhs1 novelty factor or it’s a part of your daily commute, the marine transport system is impressive.

Late last year, plans were revealed to expand the service in Dubai’s water by 188 per cent.

The RTA has also recently revealed that the timetable and services will use data to analyse the daily operational schedule for its water taxis, abras and ferries.

Dubai traffic: Dubai Metro

In the aftermath of the UAE’s worst-ever storm, four Dubai Metro stations have been out of action on the busy red line.

Equiti, Energy, Al Mashreq and ONPASSIVE have all been closed following severe damage to each station.

All four are expected to be back up and running on Tuesday May 28 once all maintenance and safety checks have been carried out.

In the meantime, shuttle buses have been laid on between Metro stations.

Measures to manage overcrowding have also been introduced during peak hours so be sure to plan ahead if you are using the metro, as journeys could take longer than expected.

Earlier in 2024, it was confirmed that work on the new blue Dubai Metro line has begun.

In January, the RTA also announced that the city could soon be getting two more railway systems.

Dubai traffic: Roads

Congestion on Dubai’s roads continues to be a problem as the city’s infrastructure doesn’t quite keep up with the growing population.

In 2024, work began on the Al Khail Road Improvement Project which will provide improvements in Al Quoz 1, Ghadeer Al Tair, Jumeirah Village Circle, Meydan and Zabeel.

And the first sections of the project have already been completed, with the widening of roads at Al Jaddaf and Business Bay.

Other completed projects include a new free exit on Dubai Marina and a new u-turn on Umm Suqeim Street.

Phase four of the long-running Al Shindagha Corridor Project is officially 45 per cent complete as of May 2024. The project is set to cut journey time from 104 minutes to just 16 minutes on some of the city’s major roads.

In March, it was revealed that 75 per cent of the Garn Al Sabkha-Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Roads Improvement Project was completed. This involves the construction of four bridges spanning 2,874 metres and is designed to handle a traffic capacity of 17,600 vehicles per hour.

A Dhs332 million project to cut travel time on Umm Suqeim Street was announced in January.

Dubai traffic: Taxis

Earlier this year, Dubai announced that the fleet of taxis leaving Dubai International Airport will be doubled to 700 vehicles.

The Dubai Taxi Company continues to add more taxis to the city’s roads every month.

It was also revealed this year that we will be getting a fleet of flying taxis in the city by the end of 2025.

The RTA has also added 4,500 touch screens to cabs across the city, so if you are ever stuck in traffic then at least you’re able to keep entertained.

Dubai traffic: Trams

There have been no changes to the tram service in 2024 other than a brief period during the April storm when they were not operating.

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