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Dubai eyes 4m smart gate users in three years

DUBAI, September 6, 2014

Dubai has announced plans to register four million travellers over the next three years for smart gates at the UAE emirate's two international airports.

Equipped with automatic identification system, facial imprint and automatic iris scan, Smart gates are designed to help passengers complete their passport control procedures at Dubai International and Al Maktoum International airports in a very short span of time without standing in long queues for stamping their passports, said a statement from General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs in Dubai (GDRFA-Dubai).

The smart gate was introduced in January last year at the Dubai International Airport, ranked the world’s busiest airport for international passengers with a projection of 70 million passengers in 2014, it added.

Unveiling details about the Smart gates expansion in the September edition of Manafez Dubai, GDRFA-Dubai’s newsletter, the deputy director general Major General Obaid Moheir bin Suroor, said: "The GDRFA-Dubai aims to have 102 smart gates at Dubai International and Al Maktoum International airports by the end of the second phase of the programme which was launched with only 12 smart gates."

Smart gates, he stated, will not only enable us to absorb the increasing number of passengers and guarantee smooth flow of traffic at the airport, but also improve security.
 
Director General Major General Mohammed Al Marri said GDRFA-Dubai was giving finishing touches to a campaign it plans to launch to create wider awareness about the smart gates and to broaden its user numbers to four million travellers in the next three years.

He called upon UAE nationals, residents and visitors to register for the smart gates at GDRFA-Dubai headquarters, Dubai International Airport’s Terminal 1 and 3, Emirates airlines headquarters and dnata.

Major General Obaid briefed Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE and Ruler of Dubai, about the GDRFA-Dubai’s plan of action during his recent tour of the Dubai International to review of work progress on the infrastructure and facilities of Concourse D due to open next year.

Built at a cost of Dh4 billion ($1.08 billion), Concourse D has been designed to handle 18 million passengers annually and enough to accommodate 17 aircraft, including giant Airbus A380 and Boeing 777.

It will be connected to Terminal 1 through an elevated rail link stretching 350 meters to facilitate the movement of travellers to Concourse D.

GDRFA said it has taken another major step to fasten and smooth passenger facilitation at the Dubai International through an electronic linkage with Emirates airlines.

The first-of-its-kind project in the Middle East region will reduce travel time for departures by 50 per cent from the current 30 minutes when completed, it added.

New systems and procedures will be implemented soon to speed up travel for arrivals, including new software and Advance Passengers Information System (APIS). These systems and procedures will reduce travel time for arrivals by 60 per cent, said Major General Obaid.

The newsletter also gives details about the new visa fee structure introduced in the UAE on August 1 in line with the UAE Cabinet decision.

The new visa system is expected to give a boost to cruise and medical tourism in addition to attracting property investors, he added.-TradeArabia News Service




Tags: Dubai | travellers | airport |

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