Passengers have found themselves on the wrong routes after sudden changes to many buses in Abu Dhabi.
Some have been changed and others cancelled. Passengers say they were not notified of any changes that came into effect on Friday.
It is not clear how many routes have been adjusted but a spokesman from the Department of Transport said that the website and app had been updated with the new information.
Passengers said the details of those changes were not passed on clearly in advance.
Aisha Sen, 31, a sales executive from India, would take the 67 bus from Al Zahiyah, where she lives, to her workplace on Reem Island every day.
“I have been checking the postings at the bus station every day,” Ms Sen said. “There was a notice that said routes would be changed but it did not say which bus numbers and which routes.”
She picked up a copy of the bus timetable from Abu Dhabi Central Bus Station for clarity.
“Bus 67 was still listed but when I waited to take it from Reem Island at 9pm, as I usually do, it never arrived,” Ms Sen said.
She said that the bus number was still listed on the noticeboard.
“When I went home my husband said, ‘Don’t worry, we will follow the 67 bus from Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank on Salam Street to see which stops it is making now’,” Ms Sen said.
The couple discovered the bus no longer goes beyond Electra Street.
“I used to live on Electra and moved house specifically to be nearer to a bus 67 stop,” said Ms Sen, who has been using the Darb app to figure out the fastest way to get to work after the changes.
“Now I will have to walk for 15 minutes from Khalifa Complex to ADCB on Electra Street. I think it will take me about 20 minutes.”
She said she was fine with the exercise during winter but cannot imagine making the journey during the summer, particularly while fasting during Ramadan.
“I tried to find out better alternatives from the DOT website and the app but I couldn’t find anything more convenient,” she said.
Abdulrahman Al Sheikh, a student from Sudan, said he took his usual 63 bus on Saturday only to find himself kilometres from his destination.
“I was taking the bus from opposite Marina Square, where I live, to my sister’s house at the City of Lights building,” Mr Al Sheikh said. “I waited for the bus for about an hour but it never arrived.”
He decided to take another bus that usually goes to that area, only to find himself in the wrong place.
“I opened the map on the app and saw that it was taking a different much longer route than usual, so I got off,” said Mr Al Sheikh, 24.
He said the new routes were updated on the screens inside the bus but the routes have not appeared on the screen for so long that passengers stopped checking.
“I used to take the 130 bus to Abu Dhabi University every day,” Mr Al Sheikh said. “We are on holiday now so I do not know if the route has changed. I think I will go scouting the route before university starts on January 10.”
Jennifer Castro-Agostinho, a regular passenger, said she was surprised to discover that three of the buses she usually took to get home from work were cancelled without notice.
“I live in Khalifa City A and I take the bus after work from the bus terminal near Al Wahda Mall,” said the Australian. “On Sunday night I found out that they cancelled the 161, 162 and 163 buses, and now only 160 is running.”
Previously, there would be a bus to Khalifa City A every half an hour but when she went for her usual 7pm bus, Ms Castro-Agostinho had to wait until 7.30pm for the new service.
She said she was told that the 161, 162 and 163 buses have been replaced with mini buses, but has struggled to find information about the new services.
“We don’t know where they go,” Ms Castro-Agostinho said. “I was in Khalifa and saw one mini bus on one side and two mini buses on the other side and I had to ask where they were going.”
She said the new schedules have yet to be posted at the main bus terminal and that when she called the Department of Transport for clarity, the staff did not have the information she needed.
When contacted by The National, the department said the app and website had been updated and that they would be releasing information that explained the changes "in the coming period".
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
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Price, base: Dh359,200
Engine: 2.9L twin-turbo V6
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 450hp at 5,700rpm
Torque: 600Nm at 1,900rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 8.7L / 100km
The%20Kitchen
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The Bio
Name: Lynn Davison
Profession: History teacher at Al Yasmina Academy, Abu Dhabi
Children: She has one son, Casey, 28
Hometown: Pontefract, West Yorkshire in the UK
Favourite book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Favourite Author: CJ Sansom
Favourite holiday destination: Bali
Favourite food: A Sunday roast
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SMEs in the UAE are defined by the number of employees, annual turnover and sector. For example, a “small company” in the services industry has six to 50 employees with a turnover of more than Dh2 million up to Dh20m, while in the manufacturing industry the requirements are 10 to 100 employees with a turnover of more than Dh3m up to Dh50m, according to Dubai SME, an agency of the Department of Economic Development.
A “medium-sized company” can either have staff of 51 to 200 employees or 101 to 250 employees, and a turnover less than or equal to Dh200m or Dh250m, again depending on whether the business is in the trading, manufacturing or services sectors.
RESULTS
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THE DETAILS
Director: Milan Jhaveri
Producer: Emmay Entertainment and T-Series
Cast: John Abraham, Manoj Bajpayee
Rating: 2/5
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THE BIO
Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979
Education: UAE University, Al Ain
Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6
Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma
Favourite book: Science and geology
Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC
Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.
Where to donate in the UAE
The Emirates Charity Portal
You can donate to several registered charities through a “donation catalogue”. The use of the donation is quite specific, such as buying a fan for a poor family in Niger for Dh130.
The General Authority of Islamic Affairs & Endowments
The site has an e-donation service accepting debit card, credit card or e-Dirham, an electronic payment tool developed by the Ministry of Finance and First Abu Dhabi Bank.
Al Noor Special Needs Centre
You can donate online or order Smiles n’ Stuff products handcrafted by Al Noor students. The centre publishes a wish list of extras needed, starting at Dh500.
Beit Al Khair Society
Beit Al Khair Society has the motto “From – and to – the UAE,” with donations going towards the neediest in the country. Its website has a list of physical donation sites, but people can also contribute money by SMS, bank transfer and through the hotline 800-22554.
Dar Al Ber Society
Dar Al Ber Society, which has charity projects in 39 countries, accept cash payments, money transfers or SMS donations. Its donation hotline is 800-79.
Dubai Cares
Dubai Cares provides several options for individuals and companies to donate, including online, through banks, at retail outlets, via phone and by purchasing Dubai Cares branded merchandise. It is currently running a campaign called Bookings 2030, which allows people to help change the future of six underprivileged children and young people.
Emirates Airline Foundation
Those who travel on Emirates have undoubtedly seen the little donation envelopes in the seat pockets. But the foundation also accepts donations online and in the form of Skywards Miles. Donated miles are used to sponsor travel for doctors, surgeons, engineers and other professionals volunteering on humanitarian missions around the world.
Emirates Red Crescent
On the Emirates Red Crescent website you can choose between 35 different purposes for your donation, such as providing food for fasters, supporting debtors and contributing to a refugee women fund. It also has a list of bank accounts for each donation type.
Gulf for Good
Gulf for Good raises funds for partner charity projects through challenges, like climbing Kilimanjaro and cycling through Thailand. This year’s projects are in partnership with Street Child Nepal, Larchfield Kids, the Foundation for African Empowerment and SOS Children's Villages. Since 2001, the organisation has raised more than $3.5 million (Dh12.8m) in support of over 50 children’s charities.
Noor Dubai Foundation
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum launched the Noor Dubai Foundation a decade ago with the aim of eliminating all forms of preventable blindness globally. You can donate Dh50 to support mobile eye camps by texting the word “Noor” to 4565 (Etisalat) or 4849 (du).
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