Massive investments to expand bus networks in Saudi Arabia and the UAE are highlighting the potential for major growth in the commercial vehicles market in the Middle East as regional economies rebound from the global economic downturn. In Riyadh, international public transport specialists LRTC from Germany have been called in to undertake an ambitious bus master plan for the Saudi capital. Dramatic expansion of regional bus services is shown best in Abu Dhabi which is expected to have more than 1,725 public transport vehicles on its roads by the middle of 2010 compared with around a dozen bus services just a few years ago. In Dubai, the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) is continuing to expand its public bus services, adding more routes to link in with the new Metro system having completed a AED845 million deal in June to buy 518 new buses. Expansion of public bus services points to the region being an increasingly lucrative market for manufacturers who can now look forward with new optimism to the launch of the region's first specialized trade event for commercial vehicles in Dubai on March 9-11, 2010 at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre. Organized by Streamline Marketing Group, Commercial Vehicles Middle East, the event is designed to position the UAE as a focal point for the commercial vehicles industry in the Middle East, which is aiming for significant growth as the market recovers from the effects of the global economic crisis. The timing of the exhibition's launch has been welcomed by the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry. “Recent studies and analysis suggest that the UAE is starting to recover from the global economic downturn, and the outlook for 2010 is promising,” said the Chamber's Director General Eng Hamad Buamim. “Oil prices are near the highest level in a year and auto sales in the UAE are expected to rise five per cent in 2010, as easing liquidity conditions boosts confidence in the sector. We are confident that the commercial vehicles market will be one of the next to benefit from the UAE's general economic recovery.” Manufacturers will have been encouraged by calls from experts at last month's International Association of Public Transport (UITP) congress in Doha for Middle East governments to pay more attention to strengthening public transport networks as a solution to population growth issues and traffic congestion. By 2020, Dubai ‘s population is expected to exceed five million, with mobility demand set to quadruple to 22 million daily passenger trips. In response, the RTA's master plan is designed to increase the modal share of public transport from 6 percent currently to about 30 percent over the next 10 years, at the expense of private cars. For the major players in the commercial vehicles sector, meanwhile, more opportunities are emerging as the requirements of private and public sector fleet managers increase. Proof of this was provided in the UAE last month when Fast Rent A Car announced it was investing AED45 million to more than double the size of its fleet of vehicles.
