The comprehensive study for the rollout of Dubai's self-driving trackless tram system will be concluded by middle of next year, or as early as first quarter of 2026, a senior official from Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) exclusively confirmed to Khaleej Times on the sidelines of Gitex Global 2025 .

Trackless trams will play a vital role in easing road congestion and supporting Dubai's growing population. The driverless, eco-friendly electric public transport system will be connected to the Dubai Metro, and will contribute towards achieving Dubai's goal of having 25 per cent of transportation smart and driverless by 2030, noted Dawood Alrais, director of Rail Maintenance Department at RTA's Rail Agency.

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Compared to traditional trams - including the existing Dubai Tram - the trackless tram does not require fixed rails. This flexibility allows it to move smoothly through city streets, using smart navigation technologies, including optical sensors, GPS (global positioning system), and LiDAR (light detection and ranging) sensing technology to follow a "virtual track" on the highway or any major street.

Since there is no need to build fixed tracks, creating“virtual tracks” leaves a smaller environmental footprint than conventional trams. Maintaining it also requires lower operational costs.

First announced in November last year - coinciding with the 10th anniversary of Dubai Tram - the trackless trams will run side-by-side with regular cars and buses. But to ensure safety, Alrais noted, trackless trams will have dedicated lanes, similar to dedicated bus lanes already in place in some areas in Dubai.

Like buses, trackless trams will have fixed routes - there will be pick-up and drop-off stations. Trackless trams, however, will be able to comfortably carry more than three times the capacity of regular buses. Each tram will have three carriages with a capacity of 300 passengers.

Trackless trams will have the same width as a regular bus - between 2.55 and 2.65 metres. Their total length would be between 32 and 42 metres. They are powered by batteries, and a single charge would allow the tram to travel up to 100 kms, a little short of covering the distance between Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

Compared to Dubai Tram, trackless trams will be faster, running at a top speed of 70 km/h, and an operational speed between 25 and 60 km/h. The average speed of Dubai Tram is a little more than 20km/h due to frequent stops and the need to slow down at junctions for safety reasons.

According to Alrais, trackless trams - which run on rubber tyres - are more flexible than conventional trams as they only require a 12-metre operational radius to make turns, as compared to an 18-metre operational radius for traditional trams.

Earlier, it was announced that the 'trackless trams' project would cover eight locations across Dubai. Alrais, however, noted there could be more, but declined to identify which areas will have trackless trams. What he is sure of is that the project is on track to meet the growing demand for a seamless public transport system in Dubai.

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