802 million passengers used public transportation in 2025

The Roads and Transport Authority in Dubai announced that the number of users of public transportation and shared transportation in Dubai, which includes the Dubai Metro, Dubai Tram, public transportation buses, marine transportation: (abras, ferry, and water taxi), and shared transportation: (smart application company vehicles, hourly rental vehicles, and buses on demand), in addition to taxis (Dubai Taxi and franchise companies), reached 802.1 million passengers in 2025, compared to about 747.1 million passengers. In 2024, registering a growth of 7.4%.
The average daily number of passengers was about (2.2) million passengers, compared to about (2) million passengers in 2024, while the number of users of luxury transportation vehicles (limousines), “not counted among the number of mass transportation passengers,” reached 23.6 million passengers, compared to about 19.2 million passengers in 2024.
The total number of public transportation, shared transportation, and taxi trips during the past year reached 167.3 million trips, of which about 120 million trips were for taxis, and more than 41 million trips were for shared transportation. The months of October and November had the highest number of trips, with 15.1 million trips each, and the month of October 2025 recorded the highest rate in the number of passengers, during which approximately 72.8 million passengers were transported. One million passengers, November came second with about 72.6 million passengers, then December with about 71.4 million passengers, and the number of passengers in the remaining months ranged between 61 and 69 million passengers.
The high levels of demand during the last quarter of the year confirm the stability of usage rates within the mass transit system during the periods of highest demand, which shows the system’s ability to absorb high demand, within stable operating conditions, with December recording a lower level compared to October and November, in light of the changing movement patterns associated with the holiday season and the end of the year.
The success of the strategic vision
Mattar Al Tayer, Director-General and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Roads and Transport Authority, stressed that the progressive and sustainable growth in the number of users of public transportation and shared transportation in the Emirate of Dubai, which recorded 7.4% last year, as well as an increase in the number of users of shared transportation by 30% compared to 2024, constitutes a structural shift in transportation patterns, and confirms the success of the strategic vision pursued by the Authority, in building an integrated transportation system, which constitutes a basic foundation for quality. Life and economic development in the emirate.
Al Tayer said: “These indicators represent the culmination of long-term investments in infrastructure, smart technologies, and the integration of various means of transportation, as mass transportation has become a pivotal element in sustainable urban planning, and a major supporter of the efficiency of cities and their ability to accommodate rapid population and economic growth.”
High operational efficiency
He added: “The continuous high demand for the various means of the public transportation system in Dubai confirms the system’s ability to work with high operational efficiency, thanks to the integration of metro, tram, bus, and marine transportation services and shared transportation, and the diversity of options that meet the needs of daily transportation patterns, providing flexible and safe alternatives that meet the needs of different categories of users.”
Mattar Al Tayer stressed that the Roads and Transport Authority continues to work on developing a smart, sustainable, and integrated mass transportation system, through expanding the metro, tram, and bus networks, enhancing the efficiency of marine transportation, and supporting shared mobility solutions, in addition to employing artificial intelligence techniques in data management and designing the customer experience journey, in line with Dubai’s future aspirations, a leading global city, and enhancing its position among the best cities to live, work, and visit.
He pointed out that the Authority intends to expand the routes designated for buses and taxis, during the years 2025 and 2026, and includes the implementation of six routes with a length of 13 km, thus bringing the total length of the routes allocated for buses and taxis to 20 km. These routes will contribute to increasing the number of passengers by 10%, improving the bus arrival rate by 42%, and reducing bus travel time by 41%. The Authority is also studying the implementation of the project: (a tram without tracks). In eight locations in Dubai, it is an advanced, self-driving, environmentally friendly system that runs on electric power. It uses a virtual railway that works with a camera tracking system for the paint lines on the track. It is characterized by low cost and shorter implementation time, compared to traditional tram projects.
He said: “Our strategic goal is to establish mass transportation as the first choice for transportation in Dubai, by constantly improving the quality of services, expanding the geographical coverage, enhancing integration between modes, improving user service, and providing a flexible, safe and sustainable transportation system that keeps pace with rapid population and economic growth, and supports Dubai’s journey towards smoother and more efficient transportation and a higher quality of life for all.”
Usage rates
The Dubai Metro is the backbone of the public transportation system in the emirate, as it accounted for the largest proportion of the number of users of mass transit, shared transportation, and taxis in 2025, at 37%, while the share of taxis reached 26%, compared to about 27% in 2024, recording a decline for the third year in a row, which is a good indicator of passengers shifting towards using mass transportation.
The share of public transportation buses reached 25%, and shared transportation recorded a continuous increase over the past three years, rising from 6.2% in 2023, to 7.5% in 2024, reaching 9% in 2025. Marine transportation and the Dubai Tram maintained their shares at about 2% for marine transportation and 1% for the Dubai Tram, and this shift is a positive indicator of growth. The continued use of mass transportation, supported by improving the reliability of the service, and the integration of the network between the metro, buses, and shared transportation, which consolidates the role of the mass transportation system in meeting the transportation needs of residents and visitors. The sustainable growth in the number of passengers also confirms the impact of developing the mass transportation system, and the continuity of aligning the service with demand, especially in managing demand rates and improving transportation service through various means of mass transportation.
Dubai Metro
The number of users of the Dubai Metro, with its red and green lines, reached 294.7 million passengers in 2025, an increase of 7% compared to 2024. BurJuman Station (a shared station on the red and green lines) and Al Rigga Station accounted for the largest share of the number of passengers during the past year, as the number of passengers at Burjuman Station reached 17.8 million, recording an increase of more than 1.5 million passengers over last year, while the number of passengers at Al Rigga Station reached 17.8 million passengers. 13.8 million passengers. On the Red Line, Union Station recorded the largest number of passengers with a total of 13.6 million passengers, followed by Mall of the Emirates Station with about 11.2 million passengers, then Burj Khalifa/Dubai Mall Station with about 10.9 million passengers.
On the Green Line, Sharaf DG Station ranked first in number of passengers with 10.5 million passengers, followed by Baniyas Station with 8.4 million passengers, and Stadium Station came third with 7.5 million passengers.
The high demand for these stations is linked to the nature of their roles within the metro network, as some of them serve as major interchange stations between lines, and others serve urban, commercial and tourist attraction centers, in addition to the integration of a number of them with bus stations and the broader mass transit network, which enhances ease of access and supports daily transportation service for residents and visitors.
Transportation users
Public transportation buses last year transported 197.2 million passengers, an increase of 5% compared to 2024. The number of users of marine transportation, which includes abras, water taxis, and the Dubai Ferry last year, reached 18.4 million passengers, an increase of 3%. The Dubai Tram transported 9.9 million passengers, an increase of 5% compared to 2024. As for shared transportation, which includes smart application company vehicles and rental vehicles. By hours, and on-demand buses, they transported 72.9 million passengers last year, an increase of 30%, while taxis in Dubai last year transported 209 million passengers, an increase of 4% compared to 2024. The number of users of luxury transportation vehicles (limousines) reached about 23.6 million passengers, during the year 2025, an increase of 22% compared to 2024.
This distribution, across various means of transportation, shows the integration of the mass transportation system, by providing multiple alternatives that serve different types of daily trips for users, as public transportation buses and the Dubai Metro contribute to serving high-volume daily trips, and on-demand transportation and luxury transportation complement coverage of short-term or private trips, thus enhancing mobility flexibility, within an interconnected transportation network.
This also highlights the ability of the mass transit system to accommodate the growing demand efficiently within a coherent operational framework at the network level, in a way that supports the Emirate of Dubai’s ongoing trend towards smoother transportation and a higher quality of life for residents and visitors.