
Green taxis: ‘Hala EV' sees 4 new models enter fleet
Image: Supplied
The move aligns with Dubai's broader ambition to convert all taxis to hybrid or hydrogen-powered vehicles by 2027.
As part of the initiative, Hala is integrating four new electric vehicle (EV) models — BYD, Skywell, GAC Emkoo, and Tesla — into its fleet, bringing the total number of EV taxis close to 500.
The rollout will initially cover high-demand areas, including Dubai Marina, JLT, JBR, Palm Jumeirah, and Al Barsha.
'The launch of the Hala EV initiative reinforces our role as a key player in Dubai's sustainability vision while continuing to provide a seamless and reliable transport solution for our customers,' said Khaled Nuseibeh, CEO of Hala. 'Every ride in a Hala EV is a step towards a cleaner, smarter, and more sustainable city.'
Hala customers can opt for an EV taxi via the Careem app at no additional cost.
With 90 per cent of Hala's 13,000-strong fleet already comprising hybrid vehicles, the company is now looking to scale its EV fleet further as part of its long-term commitment to sustainability.
Hala has seen rapid growth since its launch
Since its 2019 launch as a joint venture between Careem and Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), Hala has expanded rapidly, managing over 24,000 captains across its fleet. The company's technological advancements, including high-density Location (HDL) tracking, are designed to improve fuel efficiency and optimise
Dubai's transportation sector is undergoing a significant transformation, with the government prioritising green mobility solutions.
Hala's latest expansion underscores its role in shaping the future of urban transport while contributing to the city's environmental goals.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Dubai Eye
8 hours ago
- Dubai Eye
Dubai's RTA to get over 600 eco-friendly buses under AED 1.1 billion deal
Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has announced plans to add 637 eco-friendly buses to its fleet after signing an agreement worth AED 1.1 billion at the UITP Global Public Transport Summit. The buses will meet the European 'Euro 6' low-emission standards, highlighting the RTA's commitment to support Dubai's sustainability goals transition towards a 100 per cent electric and hydrogen-powered public bus fleet by 2050. Deliveries are scheduled for 2025 and 2026, and also includes 40 electric buses, marking the country's "largest and first-of-its-kind order". The authority also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer Build Your Dreams (BYD) to trial electric buses in the city. The e-buses will feature the latest battery systems and technologies developed by BYD.


Zawya
15 hours ago
- Zawya
How is Tesla expected to remotely control its robotaxis, and what are its limitations?
Tesla is expected to tiptoe into its long-awaited robotaxi service in Austin, Texas, as soon as Sunday with about 10 of its Model Y SUVs that will operate within strict limits. CEO Elon Musk has said the company is being "super paranoid" about safety and that humans will remotely monitor the fleet. Remote access and control - known in the industry as "teleoperation" - is used in varying degrees by the handful of robotaxi startups operating around the globe. The technology has clear advantages and important limitations. Here are some details of how it works: WHAT IS TELEOPERATION? Teleoperation is the control of machines by humans in a different location, usually over a wireless network. It is used to train robots to operate autonomously, monitor their autonomous activity, and take over when required. HOW DO ROBOTAXI OPERATORS USE TELEOPERATION? The global robotaxi industry is still in test mode, as companies deploy the vehicles in limited geographic areas and continually adjust the artificial intelligence software that controls them. Teleoperation is often used to intervene when a vehicle is unsure of what to do. Alphabet's Waymo, for example, has a team of human "fleet response" agents who respond to questions from the Waymo Driver - its bot. "Much like phone-a-friend, when the Waymo vehicle encounters a particular situation on the road, the autonomous driver can reach out to a human fleet response agent for additional information," Waymo said in a blog post last year. Former Waymo CEO John Krafcik told Reuters, "the cars aren't being actively monitored," adding that the software is "the ultimate decision-maker." A Waymo video shows a car asking a remote operator whether a street with emergency response vehicles is open to traffic. When the human says yes, the vehicle proceeds. In contrast, other companies, such as Baidu's Apollo Go in China, have used fully remote backup drivers who can step in to virtually drive the vehicles. Baidu declined to comment. WHAT ARE THE LIMITATIONS? Driving vehicles remotely on public roads has a major potential problem: it relies on cellular data connections that can drop or operate with a lag, disconnecting the vehicle from the remote driver in dangerous situations. Philip Koopman, a Carnegie Mellon University engineering professor and autonomous-vehicle safety expert, said that approach could work for a small test deployment of 10 vehicles, such as Tesla's initial effort in Austin, but he called teleoperation "inherently unreliable technology." "Eventually you will lose connection at exactly the worst time," he said. "If they've done their homework, this won't ever happen for 10 cars. With a million cars, it's going to happen every day." Former Waymo CEO Krafcik agreed, adding that the time delay in cell signal makes remote driving "very risky." On the other hand, relying on the vehicle to reach out for help and allowing the vehicle to be the decision-maker are risky as well, Koopman said, as it does not guarantee the vehicle will make the right decision. Waymo declined to comment on the limitations of its approach. Koopman also noted there are limits to how many vehicles one person can safely monitor. A group of Democratic Texas lawmakers asked Tesla on Wednesday to delay its robotaxi launch until September, when a new autonomous-driving law is scheduled to take effect. The Austin-area lawmakers said in a letter that delaying the launch "is in the best interest of both public safety and building public trust in Tesla's operations." WHAT IS TESLA'S APPROACH? Musk for years has promised, without delivering, that its Full Self-Driving (Supervised) advanced driver assistance software would graduate to completely self-driving and control robotaxis. This year, he said Tesla would roll out a paid service in Austin underpinned by an "unsupervised" version of the software. "Teslas will be in the wild, with no one in them, in June, in Austin," Musk told analysts and investors in January. In May, he told CNBC that the robotaxi would only operate in parts of Austin that are safe for it, would avoid difficult intersections, and would use humans to monitor the vehicles. What those teleoperators will do is not clear. For years inside Tesla, company executives have expected to use teleoperators who could take over in case of trouble, said one person familiar with the matter. For instance, if a robotaxi were stuck in a crowded pedestrian area and confused about what to do next, a human teleoperator could take over and guide it, the source said. Tesla advertised for teleoperation positions, saying the company needs the ability to "access and control" autonomous vehicles and humanoid robots remotely. Such employees can "remotely perform complex and intricate tasks," it said in the advertisements. Tesla did not respond to a request for comment. "We are being super paranoid about safety, so the date could shift," Musk said in a post on X last week while providing a tentative launch date of June 22. (Reporting by Chris Kirkham, Norihiko Shirouzu and Rachael Levy; Writing by Abhirup Roy; Editing by Peter Henderson and Rod Nickel)


TAG 91.1
19 hours ago
- TAG 91.1
Dubai's RTA to get over 600 eco-friendly buses under AED 1.1 billion deal
Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has announced plans to add 637 eco-friendly buses to its fleet after signing an agreement worth AED 1.1 billion at the UITP Global Public Transport Summit. The buses will meet the European 'Euro 6' low-emission standards, highlighting the RTA's commitment to support Dubai's sustainability goals transition towards a 100 per cent electric and hydrogen-powered public bus fleet by 2050. Deliveries are scheduled for 2025 and 2026, and also includes 40 electric buses, marking the country's "largest and first-of-its-kind order". The authority also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer Build Your Dreams (BYD) to trial electric buses in the city. The e-buses will feature the latest battery systems and technologies developed by BYD.