News Dubai

Firms work extra to meet Salik deadline
VESELA TODOROVA SENIOR REPORTER

Car rental companies will be working over the weekend to make sure their fleets of thousands of vehicles can drive through Dubai’s new toll gates without incurring a fine.

Starting from Sunday, cars driving through the toll gates near Mall of the Emirates and Garhoud Bridge, will have to display a special sticker tag on their windscreen.

Vehicles without the tag will be fined Dh100 and the fine will be doubled every time the offence is repeated.

Although Salik launches on Sunday, major leasing firms spent the largest part of this week wondering when they will get their tags.

For some companies, such as Hertz UAE, the wait was over yesterday as they received the tags for their 5,500 vehicles. Budget Rent A Car got its 3,500 tags at 2.30pm yesterday, while Diamondlease, which has a fleet of 6,000 vehicles, was handed the stickers after 5pm.

“We needed more time, it is still impossible to get every tag out to every single customer,” said Duncan Peat, general manager of Budget Rent A Car.

“We will try and distribute them to as many customers as possible,” he said.

“The biggest job is to talk to our customers,” said Peat, explaining that the firm will have to make between 1,500 and 2,000 calls.

Diamondlease managing director, Aswini Borkotoky, said his staff will be working throughout the weekend to deal with the situation.

An executive from Thrifty Car Rental said the company will receive its tags tomorrow, while another major leasing company will most likely have to wait until the beginning of next week.

A spokesperson for the Roads and Transport Authority said that companies who are facing delays have applied incorrectly.