Dubai’s RTA constructs 19 truck rest stops, lay-bys

DUBAI / WAM

Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) is constructing 19 trucks rest stops and lay-bys across several hotspots in Dubai in collaboration with the private sector. The project includes 3 Integrated Truck Lay-bys: one in partnership with the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) and two in partnership with Almutakamela Vehicle Testing and Registration.
In cooperation with Adnoc, RTA will also construct 16 truck rest stops across Dubai in six key locations,  roads, and logistic cities that attract a huge number of trucks daily. Locations include Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Road, Emirates Road, Dubai-Hatta Road, Dubai-Al Ain Road, Jebel Ali — Lehbab Road, and Al Aweer Road. The total area of the 19 trucks rest stops and lay-bys is over 300,000 square metres, with a capacity to accommodate over 1,000 trucks and heavy vehicles.
The three Integrated Truck Lay-bys provide a host of services that step up the safety and wellbeing of drivers such as diesel-refuelling stations, motels, maintenance workshops, restaurants, administrative buildings, prayer rooms, driving training centres, clinics, pharmacies, exchange shops, laundry, and other support services and facilities for the safety and wellbeing of heavy vehicle drivers.
The truck rest stops include service facilities, prayer rooms, diesel refuelling stations, restaurants, maintenance workshops, and rest areas for drivers.
The three Integrated Trucks Lay-bys encompass a total area of over 226,000 square metres, each with a capacity ranging from 120 to 200 trucks and heavy vehicles. The lay-by undertaken by Almutakamela Vehicle Testing and Registration is located on Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Road near Jebel Ali Free Zone and Al Maktoum International Airport. It spans 100,000 square metres with a capacity of about 200 trucks.
The second layby, which is undertaken by ADNOC, is situated near Emirates Road, next to the Al Tayy Racetrack. It boasts an area of 76,000 square metres and has a capacity of 150 trucks. The third layby, which is also undertaken by Almutakamela, is located nearby the entry to the Dubai Industrial City (DIC) and covers 51,000 square metres with a capacity of approximately 120 trucks.
On the other hand, each of the Trucks Rest Stops spans an area from 5,000 to 10,000 square metres, with a capacity to accommodate 30 to 40 trucks.
Mattar Al Tayer, Director-General, Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors, RTA, said, “The construction of trucks rest stops and lay-bys contributes significantly to improving traffic safety, reducing truck related accidents by up to 50 percent, streamlining the traffic flow during truck ban times, increasing traffic awareness of truck drivers about traffic rules, and resolving the problem of parking trucks on main roads and residential areas.”
“The project provides convenient facilities for truck drivers, especially during the ban timings on trucks movement on some roads, and meets the increasing demand for truck parking spaces, especially given the huge rise in the number of truck trips in Dubai to more than 300,000 trips per day lifting 1.5 metric tonnes of commodities per day,” Al Tayer elaborated.
“The project’s goal is to provide investors with opportunities to engage in development projects and diversify their investment portfolios. The project’s benefits include improving the quality of public services, transferring knowledge from the private sector to the public sector, and training government employees on managing and overseeing this type of long-term projects based on the Build-Operate-Transfer model.”