Busting Bus Myths

One of my favorite lunch destinations is a place called Al Tawasol. It is a Majlis-style restaurant that serves a Saudi/Yemeni menu with dishes like Mandi, Mathbi and Madghot. The only problem (for me) is that the place is located next to Clock roundabout in Deira - which is a mid-day nightmare to drive through during lunch hour.

Anyways, my lunch buddy and I decided to leave the office early around 12:30 to catch a cab. Our Office is located on the busy Zabeel Road, next to Karama Post Office. 1 hr later and we are still in the street waiting for a taxi.

By then, It was not about lunch anymore, we are 5 minutes away from BurJuman Center. It was about making a point: "We WILL catch a cab and We WILL eat Mandi today!" (in a hard-headed Levant-style attitude ;-) )

We finally grabbed a taxi (literally standing in its way to stop it). We started interrogating the driver on the whereabouts of his colleagues. He told us about a huge protest Dubai Transport drivers are staging...etc

We made it to the Mandi Joint and stuffed our faces in a rush. It was 2:15 already and we were wondering if we can make it back to the office in time to see if we still have our jobs or not.

It was 3:00 and not a single cab in sight. We were like, "That’s it, we are going on foot".

We scurried toward the Clock Roundabout heading to Al Maktoum bridge when we passed by a bus station. Incidentally, a bus with the sign (KARAMA) on its destination board was about to leave the station. It took both of us a split second of exchanging 'you-wanna-do-this' glances and we were banging on the bus doors begging the driver to let us in.

We got in and asked the driver if Karama Post is on his route. He agitatedly nodded with a yes sign and stretched his arm demanding payment.

I heard so much about how bad, slow, smelly and overcrowded public bus transportation in Dubai is. That’s why I never took the bus here before, though back in my Kuwait days, public transportation was an integral component of my pre-car-owning commuting solution.

"Hope this goes well," I was telling myself.

The ride was a bit long, but curiously fast. We were worried a bit when the bus took a hard left (in opposite direction to where we’re heading) toward City Centre. But relieved after it headed back to Maktoum Bridge again through Bani Yass road after covering most of the inside roads along the way.

The bus then took the Sh. Rashid Hospital exit off Al Maktoum bridge and went all the way around DTV studios area. It was another 10 minutes of zigzagging Karama's internal roads before we stepped off at a bus stop which was a one minute walk from the office.

"we made it!"

Realistically speaking, if i was in a hurry, I would not take the bus. It could be slow because of Dubai traffic and the long routes buses here cover. But in any other situation, I don't see a reason for not taking the bus instead of a taxi.

We were seated comfortably and the bus was air conditioned and remarkably clean. No spit, gum or paper slips on the floor. There was no graffiti on the chairs or walls and people were sitting quietly minding their own business. Oh and get this, the air had occasional whisks of 'ocean breeze' from a timed air freshener thingi that you typically see in hotel bathrooms.

All this for Dhs 1.5 only.

The air freshener thingi

My first bus ticket in Dubai

Seriously, I do encourage everyone to take DM's Public Transport buses from time to time. Help reduce car condensation on Dubai streets, give your nervous system a break from the Sunny's and the Cruisers, help make the air less polluted AND save lotsa $$$..