His Highness Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, First Deputy Ruler of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, and His Highness Sheikh Theyab bin Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Etihad Rail, witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding as part of the World Government Summit between The Dubai Roads and Transport Authority and Etihad Rail Company, the developer and operator of the national railway network in the UAE, as a first step to implementing a joint project between the two parties, under which the authority will study the development of ticket reservation and fare payment solutions through the authority’s “Nol” system. The memorandum supports the digital government strategy. For the UAE 2025, and the Dubai Digital Strategy aimed at digitizing life in Dubai.
More integration
His Highness Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum said that this agreement enhances integration between federal and local bodies and institutions, and is an important step in providing ticket reservation solutions and payment systems, which will be accessible to Etihad Train passengers across the UAE, and achieves a qualitative shift in The path to further integration between the means of transportation affiliated with the Roads and Transport Authority and the “Etihad Train”, which constitutes an important addition to the mass transportation sector in the country..
His Highness added: The directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, may God protect him, are to enhance coordination and cooperation between government institutions, transfer pioneering expertise and experiences and make them available for use by various entities, and provide a unified digital platform and shared digital capabilities to provide Integrated, easy and fast digital services.
Strengthening the transportation system in the country
In this regard, His Highness Sheikh Theyab bin Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan stressed the importance of the partnership between Etihad Rail and Dubai Roads in unifying joint work efforts and benefiting from the Authority’s expertise in employing smart technologies and solutions that serve Etihad Rail’s endeavors to develop “passenger train” according to the best possible standards. International standards and standards to provide, when operated, a safe, reliable and easy travel experience for passengers across the country, within the framework of the national railway network, which, in a short period and thanks to the directives of our wise leadership, has achieved a pivotal position on the map of the transport sector as it plays an effective role in strengthening the transport and infrastructure system in the country. The UAE and in developing a national economy characterized by diversity and inclusiveness, in line with the UAE’s position as a regional and global transportation hub..
The signing of the memorandum of understanding was attended by His Excellency Mohammed bin Abdullah Al Gergawi, Minister of Cabinet Affairs, Chairman of the World Government Summit Foundation. The agreement was signed by His Excellency Mattar Al Tayer, Director-General and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Roads and Transport Authority in Dubai, and His Excellency Shadi Malak, CEO of Etihad Rail..
For his part, His Excellency Mattar Al Tayer said that the memorandum of understanding supports the directions of integrating public transportation systems and the “Etihad Train” with the aim of providing an integrated journey for passenger customers between the Emirate of Dubai and the destinations that the “Etihad Train” reaches in other emirates, and this initiative is consistent with the strategy of Digital Nol aims to expand the use of the Nol card in services, products and solutions belonging to external partners from the government and private sectors, and also contributes to enhancing the experience of Nol card users by providing many services on a unified card that will contribute to the development of the public transportation system throughout the country, by By achieving the first and last mile strategy.
This initiative also represents a new addition to strengthening the Authority’s strategy and directions to expand cooperation with other entities. Especially those operating in the field of public transportation, in accordance with best international practices and standards.
Nol card
The Nol smart card allows users to pay the fare for using public transportation affiliated with the Roads and Transport Authority in the Emirate of Dubai. It is also used to pay the Authority's parking fees, and its users can pay entry fees to the Etihad Museum, Al Shindagha Museum, and the Dubai Ladies Club, in addition to paying for their purchases at a number of gas stations and retail stores. The daily rate of card use in 2023 reached approximately 2.5 million payment transactions, with a value exceeding 2 billion dirhams. The number of active Nol card users has reached more than five million, while the number of cards sold since the launch of the system in September 2009 has reached more than 30 million cards..
It is worth noting that the Roads and Transport Authority had previously awarded a contract for a project to upgrade the current “Nol” system, which operates using plastic card technology, to a modern and more advanced system supported by digital payment technologies for central wallets. (Account Based Ticketing) According to international best practices, at a cost of up to 350 million dirhams.
The project contributes to providing a digital payment system that works with central transportation tariff wallet technology and provides seamless integration between means of transportation in Dubai, and achieves many advantages and benefits, as the project contributes to the comprehensive development of the technologies used in payment systems so that they comply with the highest standards of electronic and financial security, and the development of aspects operational, and enhancing the use of data generated by the system, in addition to customizing services and products according to customers’ needs.
It should be noted that the Roads and Transport Authority launched the Nol card on September 9, 2009, coinciding with the opening of the Dubai Metro, and it contributed to facilitating the movement of public transportation users and paying public parking fees in the Emirate of Dubai. In 2017, the Authority expanded the uses of the card to include payment services in retail stores, and paying entry fees to a number of public and private facilities in Dubai, as part of the Authority’s plans to expand Nol services within its digital strategy..
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