To provide passengers with even more comfortable transfers when they arrive, depart or transit at Dubai international Airport, Emirates has taken the initiative to bring in a fleet of new high-tech buses for airside passenger operations.
These new dedicated buses will ferry Emirates’ passengers between the terminals and its aircraft at remote stands. Ten of these new buses are already in service. Thirty more will be delivered by January 2019, with the entire fleet to comprise 128 buses by 2020.
Adel Al-Redha, Emirates’ executive vice president and chief operations officer, said: “In line with our ‘Fly Better’ brand promise, Emirates has taken the decision to invest in our own customized buses to transport customers airside at our Dubai airport hub. Together with our latest transport management system, these new buses will enable us to provide our valued customers with a more comfortable ride and smoother connections.”
Emirates is the first airline in the world to introduce airside buses that have equal standing and seating capacity, a significant improvement on standard airside transfer buses which usually prioritize standing room and offer minimal seating.
The new fleet of buses also have ramp access and fold-up seats to make travel more comfortable for customers who use wheelchairs or are traveling with baby strollers. Other customized features include: Ambient lighting, an intercom facility to contact the driver, microphones for announcements, and flight information systems inside the buses which display the latest information to customers. Clear messaging will also appear outside the buses to alert customers quickly and easily on the direction the bus is going.
The bus fleet will be managed from a control room by Emirates’ airport services team together with its ground-handling partner, dnata. Replacing manual processes, airside passenger bus deployment and driver assignments are now handled via advanced resource planning software. This will improve deployment efficacy and enhances the customer experience with reduced waiting times.
