If you drive, you need to know this.
A launch date has been confirmed for two major Salik gates being added to Dubai roads in 2024.
Salik PSJC has confirmed that the Business Bay Crossing on Al Khail Road and the Al Safa South Toll Gate on Sheikh Zayed Road will both open on Sunday November 24.
First announced by the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) on Friday January 19, you will now need to pay to travel through the two additional points.
The first toll gate will be on the Business Bay Crossing on Al Khail Road, while the second will charge drivers on Sheikh Zayed Road, between Al Meydan and Umm Al Sheif Streets.
The good news is if you cross the two Safa Gates (north and south) within a one-hour window, you’ll pay only once. This is also the case for the existing gates in Al Mamzar.
There is a toll fee of Dhs4, each time you drive through a Salik toll gate.
Both won’t be operational until the end of November so you have a month of toll-free driving to go in these areas.
Now for the why. It’s to ease congestion on the roads so the people who choose to travel by car get a quick, easy and traffic-free route (yay).
Speaking earlier this year, Mattar Al Tayer, director general, chairman of the board of executive directors of the Roads and Transport Authority, explained when the gates were first announced that the gates will distribute traffic across the entire road network.
“The traffic toll policies also encourage the public to shift towards mass transport means such as the metro, buses, marine transport, and soft mobility options,” he added.
The introduction of new Salik gates is also expected to reduce travel times on Sheikh Zayed Road. The Business Bay Crossing Gate, for instance, is expected to contribute to reducing traffic on Al Khail Road by 15 percent and on Al Rebat Street by 16 percent.
The Al Safa South Gate is expected to reduce traffic turning right from Sheikh Zayed Road to Al Meydan Street by 15 percent.
It is also expected to cut down the traffic flow from Al Meydan and Al Safa Streets to Sheikh Zayed Road by 42 percent.
It is expected to decrease the traffic volume on Sheikh Zayed Road between Financial Centre and Latifa Bint Hamdan Streets by 4 percent and optimise the use of the First Al Khail and Al Asayel Roads by up to 4 percent, according to Al Tayer.
Salik, which is Dubai’s road toll collection system, came into effect in 2007. Currently, eight toll gates are in operation around the city. Motorists are charged Dhs4 to pass through each gate.
The company has exclusive rights to maintain and operate toll gates in Dubai until the end of June 2071.
As part of an agreement between Salik and the RTA, a fee of Dhs2.734 billion has been paid to the transport authority to put the gates in place.
Generally, it costs Dhs4 every time you go through a Salik toll gate but there are exceptions.
In January of 2024, the RTA revealed that it was considering dynamic pricing during peak times so we could see higher costs when driving through particularly busy spots.
Source: Timeoutdubai
