Transport woes: International City

Residents of International City are complaining of spending harrowingly long hours commuting to and from work on public buses.

Frustrated by the endless wait for buses due to low frequency, which is made worse by poor connectivity to different parts of town, the helpless commuters say they are exasperated by the daily grind of waiting for public buses in the sun and then taking two to three rides to get to their destination.

“It is not that these places are that far. I work in Dubai Media City (DMC) which is barely 30 km from International City, and yet on a good day it takes me three and a half hours to get there,” said Neeraj Sharma, a freelance photographer who works out of DMC, but lives in the England cluster of International City.

Long commute

Sharma said he has to leave as early as 7am to reach DMC by 10.30am and often finds it difficult to keep appointments in other parts of town due to long rides and infrequent services.

“I have to take three different buses to get to DMC. First I take a bus to Rashidiya, then another one to the Gold Souk bus stand from where I catch the bus to the DMC. It is tiring, time consuming and testing. Imagine my frustration when the bus for which I had been waiting for over an hour, doesn’t stop because it is full, forcing me to take expensive taxis,” he said.

Maniha, who lives in the China cluster and works in Deira, spends two hours to get to work.

“I wait for half hour to catch the bus to Rashidiya and then catch a connecting bus to Deira,” she said.

“I do not have a driver’s licence as I’m new to the city and taxis are so expensive. The city is not commuter-friendly, especially if you are new here.”

A trip to the Indian Consulate could “take up to two hours” informed another newcomer to Dubai, Dileep Puthiya.

It is not uncommon for commuters to share taxis to town. The ride costs Dh10 per head, but saves a lot of time and trouble, some commuters said.

A quick drive around the International City also reveals that very few bus stops in the area were covered. Most of them provided no shelter from the sun, nor was there a seating arrangement for commuters who often have to wait on their feet for a long time in the sweltering Dubai heat.