RTA adopts strategy to transform its activities and facilities to "net" emissions in 2050

Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has adopted the Dubai Zero Emission Public Transport Strategy 2050, as the first entity in the Middle East to develop a long-term strategy to shift towards net-zero public transport by 2050, through which it aims to reduce the negative impact on climate change and reduce the carbon footprint in all its activities, according to three axes: Public transport, buildings and facilities, and waste management.

This strategy coincides with the UAE's preparations to host COP28 and coincides with its endeavors to achieve climate neutrality by 2050 and move from pledges to achievements, and comes within the framework of the RTA's efforts to raise levels of maturity in the field of sustainability in roads and transport, achieve global leadership in easy and sustainable mobility, enhance the resilience of public transport infrastructure and its impact on climate change, as well as keep pace with the country's relentless efforts to achieve climate neutrality by 2050, and move from pledges to achievements.

RTA's new strategy is in line with the objectives of the Dubai Economic Agenda D33 to strengthen the emirate's position as one of the largest urban economies in the world, and aims to achieve several achievements during its years of implementation, including converting all taxis, limousines and public buses to zero emissions, creating energy-efficient buildings (close to zero), saving energy from clean sources and "zero" municipal waste to landfill, and reducing 10 million tonnes of dioxide equivalent. carbon, as well as achieving financial savings equivalent to AED 3.3 billion compared to the business as usual.

Integrated Sustainability Plan

His Excellency Mattar Al Tayer, Director General and Chairman of the Board of Directors at RTA, said that the new strategy is an integrated sustainability plan at RTA to achieve the strategic goal of enhancing sustainability and reducing carbon dioxide emissions, as well as achieving its mission to reach global leadership in easy and sustainable mobility through an innovative road and transport system and services that elevate the world-class customer experience.

His Excellency said: The new strategy includes the implementation of 10 initiatives, whose responsibilities are distributed among the sectors and institutions of the authority, as well as partnership with the private sector to implement the strategy over periods of five years, and review future goals and modify them according to variables.

He added that the new strategy, implemented under the name of "Zero Emission Public Transport in the Emirate of Dubai 2050", is in line with the global, national and local trends of the United Arab Emirates, related to the environment and its protection, such as the Paris Climate Agreement and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, and national trends such as the National Initiative for Climate Neutrality, the UAE Green Development Agenda 2030, the National Climate Change Plan 2050, and the UAE Energy Strategy 2050.

Al Tayer added that the strategy is also linked to local trends, such as the Carbon Abatement Strategy 2030, the Clean Energy Strategy 2050, the Demand Side Management Strategy 2030, the Dubai Waste Management Plan, the Emirate's Climate Change Adaptation Strategy, and other strategies, agreements and initiatives in this regard.

The Board of Directors of the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) discussed a number of points, opportunities and challenges related to the new strategy and its implementation, such as the cost associated with new green technologies, the distribution and revision of targets over time periods, the importance of the availability of energy technology providers, especially for electric buses and hydrogen fuel production stations, and other points that contribute to the implementation of the new strategy.

Taxis & Buses

The new strategy sets the target ratios to be achieved in the coming years to reach net "zero" emissions by 2050 in the three axes (green mass transport, buildings and facilities, waste management), and to convert 10% of public transport buses to electric and hydrogen buses by 2030, to reach 20% in 2035 and increase to 40% in 2040 and then 80% in 2045 to complete the percentage 100% by 2050, as well as converting taxis and limousines in the emirate to electric and hydrogen vehicles by 30% by 2030 to reach 50% in 2035 and 100% by 2040.

With regard to converting Dubai Taxi Corporation's school buses into electric and hydrogen buses, the plan aims to convert 10% of these buses by 2030 to reach 30% in 2035, 50% in 2040 and 80% in 2045, with 100% conversion completed by 2050.

Buildings and facilities.

The strategy includes the rehabilitation of DEWA's buildings and facilities, with the installation of a solar cell system on 24 DEWA's buildings and facilities before 2025, and the expansion of the scope of application to all other buildings and facilities according to feasibility studies, while the plan targets 74% of the preparation and rehabilitation of buildings by 2030 to reach 83% by 2035 and 100% by 2045, while the new buildings will have near zero capacity, starting from 2025. The lighting of existing roads will also be rehabilitated to be 100% energy efficient, with all new projects continuing to apply.

Waste Management

On waste management, programs will be implemented targeting the reuse and recycling of municipal waste by 100% by 2030, thus achieving the target of zero municipal waste to landfills, as well as recycling and using water in DEWA's buildings and facilities to reach 40% by 2050.

Great achievements

Since 2014, RTA has achieved significant achievements in the field of sustainability, with energy and green economy initiatives contributing to electricity savings of approximately 2022 GWh, water savings of nearly 360 million gallons, nearly 300 million liters of gasoline and 88 million liters of diesel, which is equivalent to avoiding 10,416 tons of emission equivalent, and achieving savings of approximately AED 420 million.

DEWA is the first entity in the roads and public transport sector in the world to publish its sustainability report, in accordance with the standards of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), and according to the international standard: ISAE3000 in 2018, and in 2020 DEWA signed the United Nations Global Charter for Sustainable Development, after aligning its data in its sustainability reports with the United Nations goals, which address global challenges, such as poverty, inequality, climate, environmental degradation, peace, justice, human rights, and anti-corruption.