Other Transport Guide Dubai
Abras
You can travel across the creek between Deira and Bur Dubai by taking a boat known as an abra. The journey will cost you AED 1 and you will be sharing the boat with 20 other people. The abras run from 5 am to midnight. Payment is in cash when you board the boat and no tickets are issued. A map of abra stations can be downloaded from the Abra section of the Road and Transport Authority’s website.
Water Buses
Modern, air-conditioned water buses have recently been put into service. They travel up and down the creek for a fixed price of AED 4. A commuter service runs from 6 am to 11 pm. A night service operates every 30 minutes from 11 pm to 6 am. Tickets or prepaid cards can be bought at the waterbus customer service at every water bus station. A map of water bus stations can be downloaded from the Water Bus section of the Road and Transport Authority’s website.
Car Pooling
At one time, car pooling was illegal in Dubai. However, it is now permitted as long as the driver and the passengers have registered for carpooling with the Road and Transport Authority through their website called Sharekni (http://www.sharekni.ae) which is Arabic for ‘share with me’). Drivers are allowed to ask passengers to share petrol and car maintenance expenses but they are not allowed to charge a fare or pick up non-registered passengers.
Registration with Sharekni is free but must be renewed every 6 months. Registration can be done online by entering personal details. A print out of the confirmation of your registration must be carried at all times in case you are stopped by the police.
Passengers and drivers who want to find people to car pool with can do so by entering their details at the RTA’s Sharekni site or, if they have already registered with Sharekni, by searching on Car Share ME (http://www.carshareme.com).
