Since the opening of 7 further metro stations on the Dubai Metro Red Line, it is expected that the number of passengers using the Dubai Metro daily will exceed 100,000 per day.
The new stations : Emirates Airport Terminal 1, Al Karama, Emirates Towers, Dubai Internet City, Dubai Marina, and Ibn Battuta now link distant parts of Dubai city and brings the total number of operational Dubai metro stations on the Red Line to 18.
The Red Line on the Dubai Metro opened partially in September 2009 and carried an average of 80,000 passengers a day. 3 additional stations for the Dubai Metro will open on May 15th and another 8 stations in the coming months. The Dubai Metro Green Line is expected to open in August 2011.
Operations on the Dubai Metro will also be revamped to offer services for more hours of the day once all the stations on the Red Line of the Dubai Metro are opened by the end of this year. The Dubai Metro currently runs from 6am to 11pm from Saturday to Thursday, and from 2pm to midnight on Fridays.
Around 13.7 million passengers have been transported on the Dubai Metro since it opened on 9th September 2009. The RTA estimates that this figure will reach 35 million in 2010.
The 7 new stations which have recently been opened will operate 20 trains during peak time and 15 trains during off-peak time. The trains will run every 6 minutes during peak time and every 8 minutes during off-peak times.
Special discounted travel passes for students and those above 60 using the Dubai Metro and other public transport systems in Dubai are expected to be launched by the end of this year.
Silver Nol Cards which are currently out of stock should be available to passengers by the 25th May. Passengers are currently being given Nol Blue Cards until a supply of the Silver Nol Cards for travel in the economy class are available.
The RTA has said that they would gradually introduce different kinds of privileged cards and passes to attract more passengers to use public transport. Special discounted fare cards for those above 60 and students will be the next to be launched. Children under 5 years of age will get to travel free. The price of a 30-day pass for those in the above 60 age bracket will be Dh200 and it will be Dh170 for students availing unlimited travel.
The maximum cost of travel for unlimited trips on the Metro, public buses or water transport in the city is currently Dh14.