Is it the traffic, or are there fewer taxis on the roads?

Whatever it is, residents are puzzled about noticeably longer wait times for Dubai taxis. People are taking to Twitter to query the longer wait periods, with wait-times jumping from 2-3 minutes to 10-15 minutes in some cases.

Careem app users using Hala and Careem are generally connected to drivers nearby, but recently both drivers and users are frustrated by the longer wait from the homegrown ride-hailing app, popular for providing a usually smooth service.

The CEO of Hala commented to Lovin Dubai that there is an influx of movement in the city and to “bear with us”, while Managing Director of Mobility at Careem acknowledged that wait times have risen by 18 seconds. He added that wait times have increased particularly during the school run and rush hour, due to heavier traffic at those times.

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Careem was the Middle East’s first unicorn, homegrown in Dubai and now operating in over 100 countries, the $3.1 billion company now lets you ride, order food for delivery, and do your groceries all in one.

“Is it just me or is there a considerable shortage of taxis in Dubai?”

Is it just me or is there a considerable shortage of taxis in Dubai in the last few days? Waiting for 20 mins on average sometimes because no taxis are available! What’s going on? @rta_dubai

— sarahrizvi (@sarahrizvi) October 4, 2021

Careem confirms average wait times have risen by 18 seconds, but still remain below 3.5 minutes

The average arrival time for a Careem in Dubai went up 18 seconds over the past month and remains less than 3.5 minutes. Anyone who has been on the road at rush hour or during the school run can tell you that Dubai is back in a big way, which is incredible to see. We know that some of our Customers have been waiting a little longer than usual during rush hour, and we’re always grateful for feedback on our services. We thank everyone for their patience as we work to create even better services.

Bassel Al Nahlaoui, Managing Director, Mobility at Careem

One resident reported his wait time from JVC has jumped from 2 minutes to 15 minutes

@CareemUAE did you guys kick out all your drivers from JVC??

For the last few days I’ve had to wait over 15 minutes for a driver compared to the 2-5mins wait time I’m used to.

— DABBYDABZ (@tonymuoh) October 1, 2021

“Bear with us” – The city is buzzing again which means busier roads, the CEO of Hala says there are multiple factors at play but Hala taxis are adapting and are currently just a little less outside of their optimum average ETA of 3 minutes

We’re seeing an influx of movement in the city as the first week of Expo 2020 is underway, which is great to witness. As a result, the ETA for Hala taxis are adapting to this and customers are currently experiencing an average ETA of below 5 minutes. As the barometer of activity across the city, we’re excited to see this rapid acceleration in people movement – with many schools now returning to face-to-face learning, people returning to their offices, events unfolding day by day and of course the biggest event in the world happening right here, bringing the world to Dubai. There are multiple factors at play here – and all of them are wonderful developments for our incredible city. Bear with us – we are just a little less than two minutes outside our optimum average ETA of 3 minutes – and we continue to offer one of the fastest response times for taxis in the world.

Basil Hovakeemian, CEO of Hala

Careem’s social media team, the hardest working social media team in the room, are responding to queries on Twitter regarding the wait times

Good evening! We have asked Hala team to reach out to you and look into this to better help you.
In addition, you can always reach out to Hala directly for any relevant issues via @halaride and they will be happy to help you. 💚

— Careem UAE (@CareemUAE) October 4, 2021

Read next: EVERYTHING You Need To Know About Expo 2020 Dubai