The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) and Etihad Rail signed a Memorandum of Understanding during the World Governments Summit (WGS) 2024 in Dubai.
The alliance will see the RTA developing ticket booking and fare payment solutions through its nol system.
Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, First Deputy Ruler of Dubai, and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance of the UAE, and Sheikh Theyab bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Chairman of Etihad Rail, were present at the signing.
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“This MoU will foster integration among federal and local entities. It is an important step to introduce ticket reservation and payment systems which will be available to Etihad Rail’s passengers across the UAE. It marks a milestone in driving the integration between RTA’s transport modes and Etihad Rail, which represents a massive addition to the UAE’s mass transportation,” Sheikh Maktoum said.
Sheikh Theyab stressed the importance of the partnership between Etihad Rail and the RTA in unifying their collective endeavours, enabling Etihad Rail to leverage RTA’s expertise in deploying smart technologies and solutions to support Etihad Rail.
Mattar Al Tayer, Director-General, Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of the RTA, and Shadi Malak, CEO of Etihad Rail, signed the agreement.
nol card
The nol card is a smart card used to pay for transportation fares across the RTA’s public transport networks in Dubai. Additionally, it serves as a means to pay for parking fees at RTA parking zones. It can also be used to pay for entry fees at various attractions such as the Etihad and Shindagha museums, as well as the Dubai Ladies Club, alongside making purchases at select retail stores. In 2023, the daily average of nol card use amounted to 2.5 million payment transactions valued at more than AED2 billion. There are five million active nol card users, and over 30 million cards have been sold since September 2009.
RTA had recently contracted a project to upgrade the existing nol system, which involves transitioning from traditional plastic card technology to a more sophisticated system supported by digital payment technologies known as account-based ticketing at an estimated cost of AED350 million.
