Top officials led residents in leaving their cars in their garages or parking areas to use public transport during Dubai’s 8th edition of Car Free Day campaign.
Tens of thousands of cars were off the roads in Dubai on Sunday as employees of about 2,500 entities including 200 major government departments and private firms took part in the annual drive of not driving for a day, reported Gulf News.
This time, it was for an additional cause of contributing to donations for charity organizations and tree plantation by Dubai Municipality, the report said.
Hussain Nasser Lootah, director general of Dubai Municipality, reportedly led a team of directors and top officials of government departments in riding the Metro from the Etisalat Station to the Union Station.
The officials later joined hundreds of municipal employees and residents at a huge exhibition area set up at the Union Metro Park for celebrating the day.
“Dubai Municipality launched the initiative to explain to the people how important it is to reduce the use of cars on the street and use the public transport. We have a high quality public transportation [system] and we feel we have a lot of possibilities, with the cooperation of all, in reducing the carbon emission and the effect on the environment,” Lootah was quoted as saying.
As announced earlier, Lootah said, the municipality will link the event with the Year of Giving initiative and set aside money corresponding to the number of participants for charities and for planting trees.
The initiative held under the theme “Not a day but every day”, has helped changing the attitude of people in reducing the pollution caused by motor vehicles, Gulf News quoted him as saying.
Several people took the Metro, while some took buses and others opted for car pooling and cycling to participate in the biggest environmental awareness drive of Dubai Municipality, the report said.
