Sharjah keenly awaits Green Line opening

The much awaited Green Line of Dubai Metro  opens on Friday and passengers coming from Sharjah can take a ride from the Etisalat Station in Al Qusais, the starting point of the 22.5km line and the closest connection to Sharjah. To make access to Dubai’s Metro easier, Sharjah Transport Corporation (STC) has launched bus routes over four months ago that provide easy access to Al Qusais.The routes are No.113, Sharjah-Al Qusais and No.111 that commences from Sharjah International Airport.“Being located at Al Qusais, Etisalat Station is one of the key stations of the Green Line that serves passengers hailing from Sharjah and neighbouring Emirates,” said the Chairman of the Board and Executive Director of the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), Mattar Al Tayer. “For this reason a parking space has been provided to accommodate about 2,350 vehicles for the time being with a capacity to raise the parking space to 6,000 vehicles,” Al Tayer added. According to the arrangements from the STC, passengers can buy tickets from bus stops and other areas as well.For example, Route No.111, which stems from the Airport, has ticket stops available at Sajaa area, the Fifth Industrial Square in Sharjah, as well as Al Qusais Dubai Metro Station and Deira in Dubai.For route 113, the ticket spots are available along the First Industrial Road, the Third (J&P) the Tenth (Gecko), the Eleventh (Roundabout Bin Laden), and the Fifteenth Industrial areas (the National Paints). In anticipation of the Green Line, RTA launched a monthly subscription service to Nol Blue Card and re-zoned Dubai into seven zones instead of the previous five. The monthly subscription to Nol Blue Card comprises three tiers tailored to cater the needs of various public transport commuters, according to Al Tayer. Subscription to the first tier, which costs Dhs100, enables the subscriber mobility using various public transport modes (metro and buses) within one zone. Subscription to the second tier, which costs Dhs180, enables the subscriber mobility within two zones.Whereas subscription to the third tier, which costs Dhs270, enables the subscriber mobility in all zones served by public transport means. “The subscriber has to specify the area within which he or she intends to commute at the time of subscription in the first and second tiers only.” “However, it is possible for the subscriber to change the subscribed zone upon the expiry of the monthly subscription,” clarified Al Tayer.No only passengers benefit from the Green Line but also commercial centres that are located along the Line. “This area is now set for rejuvenation of business activities,” said Ahmad Qassim from Al Rahman Ceramics near Al Muraqqabat Police Station.