The Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology is planning to roll out Aber taxi-meter mobile app soon for all Orange and White taxis to calculate fares and distance. All formalities have been completed and the service will be launched in the coming months. These meter fares will be not applicable to the company-operated services, officials said while announcing the future plans of the ministry in Muscat on Wednesday.
The ministry said marine logistics, digital and economy, and the development of dry ports (truck cargo) will be its priority areas for the years to come.
Dr. Ali bin Amer al Shaidhani, Under-Secretary for Communications and Information Technology, meanwhile, said the ministry is working with automobile dealers to ensure that nearly 79 percent of the cars on the roads will be electrically driven by 2035.
Speaking to the Observer, Eng Said bin Hamoud al Maawali, Minister of Transport, Communications and Information Technology, said, "As a priority, we will continue to focus on providing services to the country and unlock some of the key economic sectors with the right policies - marine sector, trucking/road transport. We will continue to tap investment opportunities in the ports sector and the digital economy with the help of the private sector."
On the UAE-Oman railway project, which will link the GCC countries, he said, "We expect by the end of this year or early next to award the Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) for this project. As such, the actual work on the ground will take a year or so from the awarding of the EPC."
He reaffirmed that the government is working on the railway project that will link Oman to Saudi Arabia.
Khamis bin Mohammed al Shamakhi, Under-Secretary for Transportation, said, "Our focus will be to finish incomplete projects and launch some new projects like the Raysut-Mughsail dual road, Nizwa-Izki, and Ibri-Saudi border road dualization.
The incomplete stretch of the Adam-Thamrait road will be retendered. There will be also an upgradation of some existing roads."
Water taxis
Laws have been finalized and locations identified with the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development to launch water taxis in the governorates of Musandam, Al Batinah, and Muscat. The project will be launched in Musandam Governorate.
Among other highlights, the ministry said that tunnel-based road projects are not viable as the cost of operating the tunnels on the Al Sharqiyah Expressway ranges between RO 30,000 and RO 40,000 per month.
All main ports in Oman received 9,800 ships, 5.2 million containers, and 205,000 tourists in 2022.
Al Shamakhi said that an agreement has been signed with a company that is studying investment in Masirah Bridge. "What the company is doing will include a feasibility study of investment, and there will also be other projects related to electricity generation, not just the bridge."
As for the Jabal Al Akhdhar project, he said the project is in the final steps and is based on the studies of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Planning and it is not possible now to determine the type of road that will be constructed.
Al Shamakhi said that the ministry seeks to develop ports that enable the Sultanate of Oman to make it an international logistical hub. In 2022, ports received about 9,800 ships, 5.2 million containers, 90 million tonnes of cargo and 205,000 tourists.
The public transport buses transported more than 6.4 million passengers on their city routes in Muscat Governorate and inter-city services with a growth rate of 185 per cent compared to 2021.
The ministry unveiled 25 investment opportunities in the field of transport and logistics during the year 2023, namely the Maabela-Thamid road, Thamrait-Salalah truck road, commercial activities in Port Sultan Qaboos, the establishment of commercial ports in Sadah, Dhalkout, Shinas, Sur, land transport tracking system, and the installation of smart scales on the main roads.
The Rusayl-Bidbid project is expected to be completed in the first quarter of the next year.
Points
1. Meter fares will be not applicable to the company-operated services
2. Water taxis planned in Musandam, Al Batinah, and Muscat
3. 79 percent of the cars on the roads will be electrically driven by 2035
4. Railway project to link Oman to Saudi Arabia
5. Incomplete stretch of the Adam-Thamrait road will be retendered
6. Pact with a company to study investment in Masirah Bridge
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