Abu Dhabi’s Department of Municipalities & Transport (DMT) is running a smart transport project on Yas and Saadiyat islands with eight robotaxis and four minibuses serving over 5000 registered users.

The DMT’s Integrated Transport Centre (ITC) wants to empower users with advanced mobility and set the stage for developing an environmentally friendly and sustainable transport sector in the emirate.

The project on Yas and Saadiyat islands includes a fleet of eight TXAI autonomous vehicles, the first fully automated self-driving taxis in the UAE. Initially launched with five TXAIs in November 2021, and enhanced with three more in November 2022, these eight robotaxis have changed local transportation and gained increasing popularity.

With over 5000 registered users, the autonomous vehicles have fulfilled 17,000 passenger journeys, providing safe and convenient transportation options to residents and visitors alike. In addition, the project incorporates four mini robobuses that were introduced to the local transport services in November 2022. These minibuses offer efficient and eco-friendly transportation, further enhancing the mobility options on the islands.

“The smart transport project is a crucial component of Abu Dhabi’s smart transport strategy, which aims to adopt smart and sustainable transport driven by knowledge and innovation,” said HE Mohamed Ali Al Shorafa, DMT chairman. “This initiative aligns with Abu Dhabi’s future vision of developing smart cities and achieving sustainable growth in the emirate. The project sets the scene for a new stage of developing an environment-friendly and sustainable transport sector in the emirate, which encourages more investment in the economy and tourism, especially as the transport sector is one of the most important drivers of growth that supports businesses and adds to the competitive advantage for economic activities in many other sectors.”

In line with these advancements, the UAE cabinet recently approved a national policy for electric vehicles, which encompasses the establishment of a nationwide network of electric vehicle chargers, regulations for the electric vehicle market and incentives to stimulate related industries. This policy aims to reduce emissions and energy consumption, and maintain the quality of UAE roads.

Additionally, WeRide, a Chinese autonomous vehicle company, has been granted the first national-level autonomous driving licence, allowing it to conduct various road tests and autonomous driving operations across the UAE.

The autonomous rapid transit efforts are accompanied by the development of Abu Dhabi’s digital-twin system, an integrated platform facilitating digital simulations and providing technical infrastructure services supported by a cloud computing system. This streamlines data storage and processing through integrated operating systems.

The autonomous vehicles will be undergoing another series of rigorous testing by the ITC in the coming months, during which the performance of the vehicles will be assessed under high passenger loading condition in the summer weather. In parallel, the ITC is looking into upscaling autonomous vehicle operations and the concomitant legislations and regulations that need to be put in place to ensure their safe and successful operations in the emirate.

According to a WeRide spokesperson: “WeRide has been actively expanding its autonomous driving products and services internationally. Middle East is one of our key target markets. This March, we officially established our Middle East office in the China-UAE Industrial Capacity Cooperation Demonstration Zone. Obtaining this very first national-level licence will for sure speed up and scale up our local development.”

Abu Dhabi’s smart digitalisation strategy aligns with the UAE’s sustainable development goals, contributing to the reduction of carbon emissions in accordance with the Paris Agreement and the UAE’s vision for Net Zero 2050, the initiative to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, making the UAE the first Middle East and North Africa nation to do so. The aimn is to leverage public and private sector coordinated efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and limit the rise in global temperature to 1.5˚C compared with pre-industrial levels.

As the UAE prepares to host COP28 later this year, the DMT and ITC say they are determined to incorporate workable innovations across Abu Dhabi to cement its role as a contributor to sustainable transportation and a proponent of environmental preservation and climate change mitigation, by providing the means to continue developing sustainable and environmentally friendly transportation that benefits the people and the planet.

www.dmt.gov.ae