Dubai: Public Transport Week in Dubai kicked off with a series of activities across various Metro and bus stations on Sunday.
Prizes worth Dh1 million are on offer, including 4 kgs of gold, smartphones, tablets, sunglasses as well as Nol cards till November 1.
Commuters with Nol cards registered with the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) enter into the draw directly as they make trips on the Metro and buses.
“The more trips a person makes using public transport the more entries go into the draw. We will give away half a kilo of gold every day as well as iPhones and smartphones,” said Mohammad Al Ali, Director of Buses at RTA’s Public Transport Agency.
Prizes can be won by competing in various games and events such as cycle races, basketball matches and blood donation drives.
“Health checks and blood donation camps will be held at various locations, including Al Ghubaiba station on October 31 and November 1, while other activities like children’s games, henna painting, stage entertainment and a book fair will be held throughout the week,” added Al Ali.
Blood donors will walk away with branded sunglasses worth Dh1,000 each.
Medical check-ups will also be conducted at the Union, Terminal 3, and Healthcare City Metro stations throughout the week.
Cycle races will be held at seven different stations throughout the week. It is a two-minute competition and the winner will go away with Gold Nol cards worth Dh50.
A major camp has been set up at Al Ghubaiba station where activities are being held every day from 6pm to 11pm. On Friday, the activities will start at 2pm and on Saturday the events will be held from 9am to 12 midnight.
Prizes will double on Saturday, November 1, when events will be held throughout the day.
However, unlike every year, public transport will not be free on November 1.
“This year we have changed the concept and focused on giving away more prizes to commuters throughout the week and on November 1 the volume of prizes will double,” said Al Ali.
As many as 146 million people used various modes of public transport in the first half of this year in Dubai.
On November 1, activities will also include basketball matches at Al Ghubaiba Metro station attended by US basketball star Kareem Abdul Jabbar.
Teams of three can participate in three different categories, with Dh30,000 on offer for the basketball event, divided into three categories of professional males, under-17 boys and women.
People interested in taking part in the basketball matches are required to register their names through the website (http://rta.duplays.com). This event will be run at Al Ghubaiba Metro station for one day only from 9am to 6pm on November 1.
RTA also announced ferry trips from Al Ghubaiba marine station to The World island, with surprises including two mobile phones and a tablet on offer every trip.
Trips are offered twice daily on October 26 and 28 as well as on November 1.
