ABU DHABI, 4 October 2006 — A new decree issued on Monday paves the way for major improvements of taxi services in Abu Dhabi.
The authorities announced the establishment of the Taxi Transport Regulation Center that will make the taxi service in Abu Dhabi more efficient and comfortable.
The center, headed by Khaled Saleh Al-Rashedi, will come under the jurisdiction of the Department of Transport.
“I am delighted to oversee the regulatory framework and transition plan that reflects the vision of the recent decree. This is the first major change to the taxi service in more than 25 years and is a great opportunity to structure our system from top to bottom in order to deliver a better service with more benefits for the license holders, drivers and passengers” said Rashedi.
Under the new plan, franchisees will be selected through a public tender to operate the new taxi services. The existing taxi fleet will be phased out over a period of three to five years. To ensure a fair income for taxi owners, a new fund will be established to buy back existing taxi licenses.
Existing taxi number plate owners will be paid 1,000 dirhams per month per license for the withdrawal of their licenses.
