Iconic Views

Still u/c metro Green line passing below the Burj Dubai downtown skyline.

On days that I decide not to take the metro into the city, I get my first clear views of the city skyline as I descend from Business Bay Bridge. It is a spectacular skyline, even on less than clear days, with the Burj Dubai, at 165 floors, pointing up to the sky like a beacon.

I am reminded of childhood days, some 40 years ago, when I would anxiously await the first views of the Louisiana State capitol building, scraping the sky at a clean 34 floors, then the tallest building in Louisiana--the place I called home. Occasionally my family made trips to the capital city, Baton Rouge, from my little hometown an hour's drive away.

<< Approach to what could be called Sheikh Zayed Rd's central business district.

Driving 4 hours instead in the opposite direction and into Houston, Texas, I would get an even bigger thrill from spying views of that city's dramatic skyline. Unbeknown to me at the time was that this was a just a hint of what Dubai would eventually come to offer.

Commute

My commute to work this afternoon has me in my regular gold class seat. By boarding at the starting station I can have my choice of seating. The cabin almost fills up as we make our way through a few stations. It is a mixed crowd of Emiratis , some Westerners and other foreign expats. Some of them look like tourists, others joyriders and just a few commuters. Of course there aren't many people still commuting to work at noon.

<< The iconic Burj Dubai tower rises to a needlepoint pinnacle.

Once I disembark from the metro it is about a 7 minute walk to my bus stop 500 meters away. That is the primary extent of my walking. One of the benefits of public transport is that one has to walk quite a bit, which is great for getting exercise. Unfortunately not much walking is required as part of my car, train, and bus commute. Of course, it isn't so much fun trekking under a scorching sun, but the weather will start to cool in a month or so.

When I lived in Japan my daily commute was either by bicycle or by train with a lot of walking, and climbing up and down hundreds of steps to get to and from train platforms. I suppose this is one reason why the Japanese population are so healthy despite their relative wealth. With escalators, moving walkways and air-conditioned bus shelters, the RTA seems to be doing everything it can to entice Dubai residents out of their cars. While this means we'll sweat less, we also won't be able to shed so many extra poinds.

The National had a photo and story on one commuter, predictably a Westerner, who carries his fold-up bicycle onto the train and cycles the rest of his journey on either end. That could well be me if I lived within cycling distance of a station and had a cycle light enough to carry around.

Dubai's new futuristic-looking headquarters for telecom Etisalat. >>

Apart from the fact that the UAE is not a country of cyclists, which results in more road hazards for those who do it, cycling or a combination of cycle and public transport has the positive effect of being healthy, time-efficient, economic and sometimes fun. There is, however, the over-confidence that regular cyclists sometimes develop in thinking they are invulnerable when, in fact, the safety issue is always there.




Construction on towers continues along Sheikh Zayed Road. ↓