Dubai has signed an early-stage deal with a Chinese "sky rail" company to look at bringing a new transport network to the emirate.
The Roads and Transport Authority and Zhong Tang Sky Railway Group will explore "futuristic transport systems".
Zhong Tang group is behind a project that was trialled in Chengdu, south-west China. The rail system made headlines for its cute panda-themed carriages.
It is understood the company's sky pod design is one of five under consideration for Dubai.
We aim to develop advanced futuristic transport systems and improve the sustainable transport network to encourage people to use public transport
“Realising this objective requires developing advanced futuristic transport systems and improving the sustainable transport network in Dubai to encourage people to use public transport,” said Abdul Mohsen Younes, chief executive of the RTA’s Rail Agency.
“The ultimate objective is to rank Dubai as the best place for living and business, a destination for visitors, and the smartest and happiest city in the world.”
The suspended monorail in Chengdu runs five metres off the ground and reached speeds of about 60km per hour during testing. It is yet to be expanded in the city, which is the global home of panda breeding.
The 1.4-kilometre-long track near Chengdu Shuangliu Airport has a capability to carry up to 230 passengers at a time.
Carriages are powered by lithium batteries instead of electricity.
Dubai already has a two-line metro network, with both elevated and underground sections, which was widely credited as tackling crippling traffic congestion when it launched a decade ago.
The emirate also has a monorail service on the Palm Jumeirah and a tram service.
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Sharjah's sky pod system in action - in pictures
The RTA deal came a day after the first passengers were given a trial of new Sharjah's sky rail at Sharjah Research, Technology and Innovation Park.
USky Transport of Belarus unveiled its version of a sky rail network.
A working 400-metre test track can carry luxury passenger pods at up to 50 kph, with a cargo line also in operation to transport freight containers.
Developers will take it on to a 2.4km test track by November.
The company has signed a similar agreement in the UAE ahead of construction of a permanent commercial line.
Dubai in market for new mass transit systems
A destination for either sky rail service has yet to be announced, but the technology will have capacity to transport cargo and passengers between key transit points.
Meanwhile other high-speed travel alternatives include a hyperloop system capable of transporting capsules at speeds approaching 1,080kph inside a vacuum tube.
It is not likely to be commercially available until at least 2030.
In November, the DP World-backed Virgin Hyperloop conducted the first successful passenger trip along a 500 metre test track in Las Vegas.
Similar trials are under way with Hyperloop Transportation Technologies in Toulouse, France.
The use of suspended sky-rail transport in Dubai aims to accelerate the mobility of people, provide more affordable transport, encourage community use and curb traffic congestion.
When the city's Urban Master Plan 2040 was unveiled earlier this year, it predicted a boom in population from about 3.3 million in 2020 to 5.8 million by 2040.
“The RTA is aligning its efforts with the national agenda to nurture a sustainable environment in terms of air quality and reliance on clean energy,” said Mr Younes.
“Signing agreements with a host of specialist companies in the development of suspended transport systems will identify the technologies used in this sort of mass transit means."
Women%E2%80%99s%20T20%20World%20Cup%20Qualifier
%3Cp%3EFrom%20September%2018-25%2C%20Abu%20Dhabi%0D.%20The%20two%20finalists%20advance%20to%20the%20main%20event%20in%20South%20Africa%20in%20February%202023%0D%3Cbr%3E%20%0D%3Cbr%3EGroup%20A%3A%20United%20States%2C%20Ireland%2C%20Scotland%2C%20Bangladesh%0D%3Cbr%3EGroup%20B%3A%20UAE%2C%20Thailand%2C%20Zimbabwe%2C%20Papua%20New%20Guinea%0D%3Cbr%3E%20%0D%3Cbr%3EUAE%20group%20fixtures%3A%0D%3Cbr%3ESept%2018%2C%203pm%2C%20Zayed%20Cricket%20Stadium%20%E2%80%93%20UAE%20v%20Thailand%0D%3Cbr%3ESept%2019%2C%203pm%2C%20Tolerance%20Oval%20-%20PNG%20v%20UAE%0D%3Cbr%3ESept%2021%2C%207pm%2C%20Tolerance%20Oval%20%E2%80%93%20UAE%20v%20Zimbabwe%0D%3Cbr%3E%20%0D%3Cbr%3EUAE%20squad%3A%20Chaya%20Mughal%20(captain)%2C%20Esha%20Oza%2C%20Kavisha%20Kumari%2C%20Rinitha%20Rajith%2C%20Rithika%20Rajith%2C%20Khushi%20Sharma%2C%20Theertha%20Satish%2C%20Lavanya%20Keny%2C%20Priyanjali%20Jain%2C%20Suraksha%20Kotte%2C%20Natasha%20Cherriath%2C%20Indhuja%20Nandakumar%2C%20Vaishnave%20Mahesh%2C%20Siya%20Gokhale%2C%20Samaira%20Dharnidharka%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
Libya's Gold
UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.
The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.
Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
The Bio
Amal likes watching Japanese animation movies and Manga - her favourite is The Ancient Magus Bride
She is the eldest of 11 children, and has four brothers and six sisters.
Her dream is to meet with all of her friends online from around the world who supported her work throughout the years
Her favourite meal is pizza and stuffed vine leaves
She ams to improve her English and learn Japanese, which many animated programmes originate in
MATCH INFO
Manchester United v Manchester City, Wednesday, 11pm (UAE)
Match is on BeIN Sports
The cost of Covid testing around the world
Egypt
Dh514 for citizens; Dh865 for tourists
Information can be found through VFS Global.
Jordan
Dh212
Centres include the Speciality Hospital, which now offers drive-through testing.
Cambodia
Dh478
Travel tests are managed by the Ministry of Health and National Institute of Public Health.
Zanzibar
AED 295
Zanzibar Public Health Emergency Operations Centre, located within the Lumumba Secondary School compound.
Abu Dhabi
Dh85
Abu Dhabi’s Seha has test centres throughout the UAE.
UK
From Dh400
Heathrow Airport now offers drive through and clinic-based testing, starting from Dh400 and up to Dh500 for the PCR test.
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
RACE CARD
4pm Al Bastakiya – Listed (TB) $150,000 (Dirt) 1,900m
4.35pm Dubai City Of Gold – Group 2 (TB) $228,000 (Turf) 2,410m
5.10pm Mahab Al Shimaal – Group 3 (TB) $228,000 (D) 1,200m
5.45pm Burj Nahaar – Group 3 (TB) $228,000 (D) 1,600m
6.20pm Jebel Hatta – Group 1 (TB) $260,000 (T) 1,800m
6.55pm Al Maktoum Challenge Round-1 – Group 1 (TB) $390,000 (D) 2,000m
7.30pm Nad Al Sheba – Group 3 (TB) $228,000 (T) 1,200m
