Passenger drones to take to the skies in Dubai

Passenger drones could be seen in the skies above Dubai as early as July 2017, according to the city’s Road and Transport Authority (RTA). Speaking at the World Government Summit, Mattar Al Tayer, chairman of RTA, said the pilotless drones, designed to carry a weight of 100kg and a small suitcase, will have a range of 50 km and are on track to take off beginning in July 2017. The drones are part of Dubai’s strategy on autonomous transportation, under which 25 per cent of all journeys within the Emirat
February 15, 2017 Read time: 2 mins
Passenger drones could be seen in the skies above Dubai as early as July 2017, according to the city’s Road and Transport Authority (RTA).

Speaking at the World Government Summit, Mattar Al Tayer, chairman of RTA, said the pilotless drones, designed to carry a weight of 100kg and a small suitcase, will have a range of 50 km and are on track to take off beginning in July 2017.

The drones are part of Dubai’s strategy on autonomous transportation, under which 25 per cent of all journeys within the Emirate are expected to be smart and driverless by 2030.

According to Associated Press, the Chinese-made EHang 184 has a top speed of 160 kph (100 mph), but authorities say it will be operated typically at 100 kph (62 mph). It carries only one passenger, who selects a destination on a touch-screen pad in front of the seat and the drone flies there automatically.

“This is not only a model,” al-Tayer said. “We have actually experimented with this vehicle flying in Dubai's skies.”

Related Content

  • Getting to the point
    September 4, 2018
    Cars are starting to learn to understand the language of pointing – something that our closest relative, the chimpanzee, cannot do. And such image recognition technology has profound mobility implications, says Nils Lenke Pointing at objects – be it with language, using gaze, gestures or eyes only – is a very human ability. However, recent advances in technology have enabled smart, multimodal assistants - including those found in cars - to action similar pointing capabilities and replicate these human qual
    Read More
  • A better use for the UK’s commuter railways?
    February 4, 2015
    A new report by think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs looks at an alternative to expanding the rail network in the UK. The report, Paving over the tracks: a better use of Britain’s railways?, by Paul Withrington and Richard Wellings outlines how commuters could pay over 40 per cent less for their journeys and more passengers could enjoy the luxury of a seat if the industry was sufficiently liberalised to allow some commuter railways in London to be converted into busways. The success of the bu
    Read More
  • China unveils trackless train
    June 5, 2017
    Chinese railcar-maker CRRC has unveiled a trackless train which uses rubber wheels on a plastic core and runs on a virtual track in a bid to speed up public transportation.
    Read More
  • Safety is priority number one for Abu Dhabi Mobility
    September 19, 2024

    The Integrated Transport Centre (Abu Dhabi Mobility) has a range of smart traffic projects to highlight at #ITSDubai2024. His Excellency Abdulla Al Marzouqi, director general of the organisation, says: “Through partnerships with global experts, we aim to explore the best practices and exchange knowledge on future innovations in smart transport.” Its Intelligent Transport Central Platform (ITCP) uses artificial intelligence to integrate monitoring and incident management systems into a unified platform, enabling automatic detection of problems on the roads.

    Read More

Highlighted Content