A 15-kilometre district is set to become Dubai’s first autonomous zone, where residents and visitors will travel across land and water using fully automated vehicles.
The Dubai Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) displayed the map of the pilot project at the Dubai World Congress and Challenge for Self-Driving Transport currently underway at the World Trade and Exhibition Centre. The initiative is central to Dubai’s ambition of transforming 25 percent of all journeys into smart, driverless trips by 2030 and by 36 percent by 2040.
The Dubai Autonomous Zone will encompass the area around Creek Metro Station in Al Jaddaf, stretching towards Dubai Creek Harbour and Dubai Festival City. Within the zone, mobility will be powered by a network of autonomous options, including RoboTaxis, RoboBuses, self-driving shuttles, autonomous abras, driverless logistics vehicles, and even automated street sweepers—all linked to Dubai Metro.
Described as a “living model” of future mobility, the autonomous zone is designed to showcase how connected, driverless transport can integrate into everyday urban life. Currently, RTA is working with global technology leaders Pony.ai, WeRide, and Apollo Go (Baidu) to bring driverless taxis into operation.
