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RTA plans 100 bicycle stands in Dubai

RTA Cycle stands in Dubai

The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) in Dubai has set 100 locations for parking bikes in key areas across the Emirate with the aim of inducing an additional mobility means in a well rehearsed approach intended to minimize the reliance on private vehicles in traveling, particularly for short distances.

Commenting on this move the Director of Strategic Planning, RTA Strategy & Corporate Governance Sector Nasir Abu Shehab said: “RTA intended to provide parking spaces for bicycles near all the metro stations in a bid to enhance the integration of the Dubai Metro with other transit modes in the Emirate. In an advanced phase of the Project, all the metro stations will be integrated with the dedicated cycling tracks.”

“All areas served by the cycling tracks will be fitted with bike stands including key areas such as the Gold Souk, abra marinas, Al Shindagha area, Al Fuhaidi Museum and Al Bastakiya area. RTA plan also includes setting bike racks at other prime locations such as malls, recreational clubs, schools, colleges, and hospitals as well as public and private entities.”

“RTA has finalised studies encompassing the construction of cycling tracks with an overall length of about 900km under 5 phases scheduled for completion by 2020. The trial run of the Project has started in some key spots in Dubai such as the streets of Jumeirah, Dubai Academic City, Nad El Sheba and Al Mankhool in addition to the Creek Corniche. Work has been completed in the construction of cycling tracks at Jumeirah Street in a sector extending 12 km and the work in other phases will proceed according to plan in order to complete the tracks under the trial phase extending 32 km.

From: Emirates 24|7

relaxing in Dubai

Indian Education Institutes hit by Dubai Crisis

Indian engineering and management institutes, which have set up bases in Dubai, are facing a 13-60 per cent dip in admissions due to the economic crisis in the city.

The institutes with branch campuses in Dubai include the Birla Institute of Technology and Science (BITS)-Pilani, Institute of Management Technology (IMT), S P Jain Center of Management, and Manipal University.

Manipal University, for instance, says it has been able to admit 622 students this year against 721 last year — a drop of 13 per cent. “While institutions of higher learning in Dubai have been affected severely, we have been fortunate to have had a minimal impact on our new admissions. While partly this can be attributed to the economic slowdown and the emigration of middle-class expatriates due to job displacements, the increase in the number of universities competing for quality students is also a contributing factor,” said B Ramjee, director of Manipal University, Dubai.

Manipal University plans to have its own campus in the city, but says its plans are slightly behind schedule in the wake of the current slowdown in the economy.

The S P Jain Center of Management, on its part, did not divulge admission numbers, and said admissions had been voluntarily reduced on account of the worldwide slowdown. “But due to the current positive turnaround, we would once again be re-instating the old numbers,” said Professor Christopher Abraham, senior vice-president of the institute.

The Institute of Management Technology (IMT), on the other hand, is said to have seen a dip of 64 per cent in its admissions. While this could not be independently verified from the institute, sources in Dubai said the institute had admitted around 90 students this year against 250 students last year. Repeated attempts to reach IMT’s director and admissions office in Dubai failed.

All these institutes have rented premises at the Dubai International Academic City (DIAC) located in the Dubai Academic City — a free zone dedicated to higher education.

There are currently 32 international universities and institutions of higher learning from diverse regions including the US, Australia, India, Pakistan, Iran, Russia, Belgium, the UK and France operating out of DIAC, catering to over 12,000 students.

To counter the crisis, some institutes like S P Jain and Manipal have increased their fees. While S P Jain increased the fees by 7 per cent, Manipal did not comment on the hike. “Our pricing policies are fairly competitive and affordable, keeping in mind the middle-class community which we strive to serve. Our philosophy has never been to use pricing mechanism as a tool to attract new students and, therefore, we will not reduce our fees to achieve those ends,” said Ramjee.

However, observes say many institutes in the region are using discount pricing to attract new students. They have also introduced substantial scholarships to attract quality students. Many institutions are also coming up with early bird offers, said a professor from one of the institutes.

Industry observes in Dubai say even American institutes which have set up campuses in Dubai in the past couple of years are facing the slowdown heat with some of them struggling to attract qualified students to survive.

From: Business Standard