Dedicated Dubai taxis for hospitals

          

 

• Image Credit: Atiq-ur-Rehman/Gulf News
• The new service is operated by Non-Emergency Transport Services in association with RTA .

Dubai: Hospitals and patients will now have dedicated taxis in Dubai, offering specialised service round the clock, the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has announced.

The service, named Aunik, operated by Non-Emergency Transport Services (NETS) in association with RTA, was launched on Sunday by Dr Yousuf Al Ali, CEO of RTA’s Public Transport Agency.

The first of its kind service in the region, the dedicated taxis are equipped with wheelchair lift, customised seating facilities for patients as well as a trained driver.

“The vehicles are designed for non-emergency travel for patients who require regular trips to hospitals as well as picking up and dropping of patients from hospitals who cannot travel by regular vehicles,” said Paul Wells, CEO of NETS, who operated a similar service in the UK for 10 years.

Dubai becomes the third city in the world after London and Dublin to have such a service, with 10 dedicated vehicles deployed in phase one. The number of vehicles is likely to grow in the next phase.

“We will definitely increase the number in the next phase depending on the response we get. These taxis will be dedicated to various hospitals but will be based at Saudi German Hospital where we have our call centre,” added Wells, who also plans to expand the service to other emirates as well as neighbouring Saudi Arabia.