Etisalat goes live with voice directory service

http://www.itp.net/news/544069-etisalat-goes-live-with-voice-directory-service

After months of in-house tweaking and testing, Etisalat has launched its voice directory service in an effort to reduce response times.

Initially available only to landline customers calling ‘181’, the service will soon be made available to Etisalat’s mobile customers as well.

The service works with the help of an Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system that uses automatic speech recognition to distinguish commands in both Arabic and English, regardless of caller accent or dialect.

As the service is only in its first phase, it can presently only provide listings for five main categories – finance, travel, hotels, restaurants and healthcare. Other categories will be included at a later stage.

Customer service agents at Etisalat, who previously handled directory enquiries, will now provide support for other categories and requests that the system can’t handle.

Waterbus on the Creek will now run after midnight

Gulf News Staff Report Published: May 03, 2008, 00:06

Dubai: The Waterbus between Dubai Old Souq and Al Sabkha stations will now run from midnight to 6am as well, the Roads and Transport Authority announced. The ferry service runs every 30 minutes and the fare is Dh4. A senior RTA official said Dubai is a city that never sleeps. "The service is tailored to meet the requirements of people commuting across Dubai Creek at night," he said.

Single Water Bus trip for 3 stations
By a staff reporter

26 April 2008

DUBAI — A new service for Water Bus passengers to travel to three stations in a single trip was launched by the Marine Agency at the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) recently.

The service being offered on Line B3 aims at easing congestion at Bani Yas Road, an RTA Press release said.

According to Ahmed Mohammed Al Hammadi, Director of Operations & Performance Department at RTA Marine Agency, the trip, which begins at Al Seef Station and terminates at Al Sabkha Station, is designed to meet requirements of customers shuttling between these stations across Dubai Creek.

“The service starts at 6.00am and continues up to 11pm, with 15 minutes headway. The trip takes three minutes from Al Seef Station to Bani Yas Station, and three minutes also from Bani Yas Station to Al Sabkha Station, with five minutes waiting time in each station. The fare is fixed as Dh4 for shuttling between Al Seef Station, Bani Yas Station and Al Sabkha Station (two trips at a cost of one trip),” stated Al Hammadi.

He pointed out that re-routing of B3 Lines has been done to keep pace with the new developments in marine transport. This comes as part of the policy of the RTA to integrate and link marine transport with other public transport modes such as buses, taxis and Metro.

http://www.gulfnews.com/nation/Traffic_and_Transport/10207031.html

Commuters on the streets can now hail taxis by SMS

By Ashfaq Ahmed, Chief Reporter Published: April 20, 2008, 00:34

Dubai: Passengers in Dubai no longer have to go through the daunting task of hailing a taxi on the road as they can now call one by just sending an SMS from their mobile phones, said a senior official. The service has been designed for passengers who want to order taxis while waiting by the road, said Abdul Aziz Malek, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Dubai Taxi Agency at the Dubai Roads and Transport Authority (RTA). He said the taxi agency is installing small boards with location code numbers and a taxi sign on them by the side of the road. A passenger can send an SMS to 4774, mentioning the area code on the taxi board. The customer will have to wait in the same location until the taxi arrives. Once the commuter sends the SMS, it will reach the booking terminal of Dubai Taxi Agency and the booking supervisor will send the nearest taxi to the customer. The booking terminal will also send the taxi reservation number to the customer, which he needs to show to the taxi driver before boarding. The starting fare for taxis booked via SMS will be Dh6 during the day (from 6am to 10pm) and Dh7 at night (from 10pm to 6am). In addition to the new service, Dubai Taxi Agency will continue to offer reservations via telephone and the internet. "The new service has been launched after complaints from commuters about hailing a cab while waiting by the roadside," said Malek. Currently, Dubai has around 6,500, taxis including 3,200 run by Dubai Taxi Agency. Booking taxis Website: www.dubaitaxi.ae Call centre: 2080808