Users of nol cards issued by Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) can now use their cards to pay for purchases at all retail outlets of Carrefour affiliated to Majid Al Futtaim Group across Dubai. The procedure has been enabled through a Mercury payment scheme, a leading firm in this field.

“This service is now available at Carrefour retail outlets in Dubai. cardholders can use them in payment for light and quick purchases at these outlets, which are compatible with the Points of Sale of the payment platform, over and above their use in mobility purposes,” said Khaled Al Awadi, Director of Automated Fare Collection Systems at RTA’s Corporate Technology Support Services Sector.

“This initiative is an important step towards realizing RTA’s objective of bringing happiness to nol card holders in Dubai through offering them diversified use of their cards. The initiative is compatible with the Smart City initiative aimed to rank Dubai as the smartest city in the world. Achieving this objective requires developing advanced applications that enable people to benefit from the diverse package of services they use on a daily basis.

“Whenever cardholders use their cards in payment for purchases at Carrefour and other available nol card payment-enabled outlets in the UAE, they will earn loyalty points under nol Plus Programme recently launched by RTA in GITEX 2018,” added Al Awadi.

“Enabling different spectrums of the community to use their nol cards in paying for their purchases is in line with RTA’s third strategic goals (People Happiness). RTA is making every effort to explore the best means of boosting the happiness of UAE people, be it citizens, residents, tourists or visitors. It seeks to provide them with safe and secure solutions that make their life style better and smoother. RTA is continuously cooperating with reputed global entities to achieve this end.

“This step will undoubtedly support the ambition of Dubai to become the smartest city in the world within three years, which warrants the use of edge-cutting technologies. The initiative encompasses excellence and innovation; the key ingredients of realizing the Smart City vision,” explained Al Awadi.

Miguel Bovidano, CEO of Operations cum Director of Excellence at Majid Al Futtaim Retail Group, was encouraged by this initiative. “This shopping initiative reflects the commitment of Carrefour to offer a smooth and exceptional shopping experience for clients. It also seeks to attract new segments of consumers through capitalizing on innovative & smart means that make their shopping an enjoyable experience. These are the pillars of Majid Al Futtaim’s vision aimed at ensuring the happiness of people every day,” he said.

The UAE Government is adopting a strategy aimed at building smart cities to lay the foundation for a better future to the benefit of all people. Such a strategy involves empowering people and enabling them to achieve optimal happiness. It is therefore imperative to develop smart and innovative solutions, such as the use of nol cards in payment for purchases in various outlets. The process contributes to providing more flexible and faster payment methods.