Samira Sheth is thrilled to park her car and catch a ride on Dubai Metro!

‘My City…My Metro’ says the blurb for Dubai Metro. Well, it isn’t my city but I certainly feel like it is my Metro. The fantastic new rail system has brought all of Dubai closer for Dubai residents. But, even for us Fujairah residents, it makes the city more accessible. Imagine having lunch in Bur Juman’s food court and catching a movie at the Imax theatre in Ibn Batuta Mall on the same day, without losing your hair over traffic snarls; parking problems or exorbitant taxi fares? Well, that’s what Dubai Metro can do for you.

Absolutely thrilled at being one of the first passengers on board Dubai Metro a couple of days after it opened, I caught a ride from Dubai International Financial Centre to Mall of the Emirates. The stations are roomy and well-designed. I parked near Shangri-La on Sheikh Zayed road (being a Friday, there were no parking charges); and crossed the overbridge to enter the station on the opposite side of Sheikh Zayed road. The overbridge was a highlight in itself, with its amazing views of ‘one of the busiest roads in the world’. I bought my silver NOL card for Dhs 20, of which only 6 Dhs is for the card and the rest is an e-purse that can be topped up and used for riding the train. Now, even Gold Class tickets are available for Dhs 20, with the same e-value purse as the Silver, to allow access to the Gold Class cabins with plusher seats and carpeting, offering panoramic views from the front of the train. There are even cabins for Women and Children only, with kids below 5 years travelling free.

The train itself is superb, as it glides soundlessly out of the station towards MOE. It is on time and fairly crowded as there are lots of excited passengers like yours truly, eager to participate in this historic event. Yet, even though I didn’t get a seat, I had plenty of space and handrail to grasp and the ride itself is so smooth and affords such wonderful views of Dubai’s icons that I didn’t really mind. It seemed that we were at MOE in a minute, although it was actually more like 15 minutes.

The MOE station itself was really crowded and apparently there are only 2 exits from the station which explains the long queue of people waiting to enter the Mall. I turned around and caught the train back towards DIFC as it was really only the ride I was interested in. In a few more days however, once the initial excitement is over, you can probably use the train more purposefully rather than just for joyrides as the crowds thin!