The Roads & Transport Authority has announced the extension of the date of fully migrating their services from the Booking and Taxi Dispatch Centre to Hala e-hailing platform (a joint venture between The RTA and Careem) to January 15, 2020. The step is taken to avail clients more time to gradually prepare for this migration from the interactive voice response system to the new e-hailing ride using Careem App. The shifting is driven by the improved quality and the massive uptake of Hala ride since launched in on 29 August 2019.

“Extending the start of the full shifting of the booking centre services to the new system using Careem app technology from 7 December to 15 January aims to prepare clients to the new system and give them ample time to familiarise with the change. The step is part of RTA’s efforts in support of the Smart City initiative, especially with the completion of about two million bookings a few days after the launch of Hala service on 29 August 2019,” said Ahmed Bahrozyan, CEO of Public Transport Agency, RTA.

Comparing the old and new systems, Bahrozyan said, “Hala customers will get a booking confirmation in about 10 seconds which was 2-3 minutes under the old system and get a taxi in an average of 3.5 minutes (11 minutes under the previous system), while keeping the fare unchanged. Hala offers its customers a smarter way to get around Dubai by knowing their fare upfront along with driver’s details. They can pay in cash or link their credit cards with the app to ease the payment of the fare. Customers can also benefit from Careem’s loyalty points system and earn rewards for the most frequent riders among other promotions. They can also rate the service by the of their journeys, which will offer input about client’s needs and expectations.”

“RTA and Hala teams are working to ensure the delivery of the service to the entire spectrums of Dubai residents. Both teams are keen to ensure a smooth migration of Call Centre users to the new digital platform on Careem App. However, some clients, especially the elderly, apparently still have limited access to smart services and will encounter challenges to use the app. Hala team is therefore working on a new landline to meet the needs of this category. Details of the fixed line will be communicated to the targeted segment in due course,” concluded Bahrozyan.