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DUBAI: The United Arab Emirates (UAE) motorists are resorting to practical and resourceful ways to save on fuel costs, Gulf News reported on Sunday.
“Carpooling and use of public transport, bicycles and e-scooters are some of the readily available alternatives which they have begun embracing”, the report added.
Some say they will still use their cars but will now get easier on the throttle for fuel economy. A few are preferring to work from home, the report said.
Petrol prices in the UAE have crossed the Dh4 mark since June 1 and the UAE fuel price committee announced on June 30 petrol and diesel prices for the month of July are as follows: Super 98 petrol is now Dh4.63 per litre, up from Dh4.15 a litre in June; while Special 95 is Dh4.52/ litre, as compared to Dh4.03/ litre last month. E-91 is Dh4.44, from Dh3.96/ litre in June, while diesel is now Dh4.76/ litre, up Dh4.14/ litre the previous month.
This month’s fuel prices have jumped by around Dh2 per litre, when compared to prices at the beginning of this year, when Super 98 and Special 95 petrol were only Dh2.65 and Dh2.53 per litre, respectively.
UAE residents like Nitin Gandhi said one has “to play smart” to achieve fuel economy. He said he will be ditching his SUV on short trips and use public transport instead. “I’ll take public transport during peak hours, especially when traffic is congested. I’ll also try to walk if it’s really just a brief distance,” he added.
Gandhi, 40, born and raised in Dubai and who currently works as an operations manager in a company, told Gulf News he will also go easy on his “old habit of driving around the city” for leisure.
Abu Dhabi resident Hafeed OP, 32, who works as a sales manager, said carpooling is the immediate solution that he and his three friends will do now.
“We all live in Abu Dhabi city and work in Musaffah industrial area. So, instead of using our individual cars, we will now go in one vehicle to work. Three cars will be left at home at any given and that’s actually good not just to save on fuel but also to reduce traffic and lessen pollution in the environment,” he explained.
Indian expat and Dubai resident, Nidhin Nandanan, 26, who works at an events and media company, said he and his colleagues are also thinking of carpooling. But he is also planning to buy a bicycle or e-scooter so that he can use it go to the office from his home in Karama.