Officials from the Roads & Traffic Authority (RTA), Dubai, and Dubai Police recently visited Belhasa Driving Center (BDC), one of the premier driving institutes in the UAE, and extended their support to BDC’s newly opened AED 17 million Wasel Vehicle Testing center, following which the center will be able to begin testing of vehicles for road worthiness within two weeks. The visiting officials included Essa Abdur Rahman Al Dossari, Manager, Licensing Department, Roads & Traffic Authority (RTA), Dubai, and Major Ali Abdur Rahman Saab, Dubai Police, who also commended the state-of-the-art facilities at BDC, which is regarded as a comprehensive set up for driving students.
Belhasa Driving Center not only provides high quality driver training, it also serves as a one-stop destination for all matters pertaining to obtaining driving licenses and specialised driving courses, as it conducts Police tests, offers driving lectures and conducts advanced driving lessons.
The visit by the Roads & Traffic Authority is in keeping with the Authority’s goal of ensuring safety of drivers and minimising road accidents by monitoring the facilities and procedures of driving schools across Dubai. The RTA is responsible for the planning and execution of Dubai’s transport and traffic needs, and is entrusted with the development of integrated solutions for road networks.
Essa Abdur Rahman Al Dossari said, “The Belhasa Driving Center has a long and impressive track record of providing the highest level of training to its students. They have also been focused on constantly improving their services and facilities to not only ensure that they produce good drivers, but also to provide an all-inclusive set of services within their premises. We are certainly impressed with BDC’s offering and we wish them all the success for their future endeavor.”
Saif Ahmed Belhasa, Chairman, Saif Belhasa Group of Companies & Belhasa Driving Center, said, “With our modern facilities, highly skilled trainers, and innovative and effective training techniques, Belhasa Driving Center is complementing the goal of the RTA, to reduce road accidents by creating responsible drivers. We place a lot of importance on the quality of training we provide to our students, which is reflected by the array of services and facilities that are provided at the Belhasa Driving Center. We have opened a state-of-the-art complex which provides a comprehensive range of services to our customers, as we strengthen our commitment to produce better drivers.”
“We are glad to receive the endorsement of the RTA and Dubai Police for the Wasel Vehicle Testing center which is being developed with a multi million dirham investment. Initially the center will offer high quality and speedy vehicle testing services using four lines. However, in the coming months, we plan to increase the number of lanes to eight, which will facilitate testing of close to 750 vehicles a day,” Belhasa added.
The Wasel Vehicle Testing center is located in the recently opened 60,000 square feet full service center of Belhasa Driving Center, which was built at a cost of AED 42 million. Students of BDC will enjoy a range of facilities at the new complex, including a convenient, internal branch of Dubai Traffic Department for issuing licences, besides providing registration, insurance, typing, eye testing, training, assessment and final road testing services, all under one roof. The center also has a larger and comfortable customer service area, separate waiting rooms for ladies and men, a large cafeteria, a kids play area, and a staff gymnasium. This is in keeping with BDC’s objective to offer a 360-degree approach towards all possible requirements of its students.
BDC has increased its fleet of training vehicles and expanded its centers to cope with the projected increase in demand for driving licences, which is expected to double by the end of 2006. At present, BDC operates a fleet of 600 training cars across the UAE, training approximately 4,000 candidates per day. BDC issues about 150 fresh licenses each day, and their efficient training services and fast-track procedures ensure that candidates are mostly issued their licenses within an average period of 30-40 days from commencement of the training course.
Belhasa Driving Center has been involved in various activities aimed at promoting the concept of road safety in the UAE. As part of its commitment to promote safe driving practices, BDC is organizing SAFEX 2006, the world training conference, which will be held at the Dubai Police Officers’ Club from March 10 to 12, 2006, in association with IVV, the international association for driver education. The conference will be opened by Lieutenant General Dhahi Khalfan Tamim, Lieutenant General, Commander in Chief, Dubai Police.
About Belhasa Driving Center:
Belhasa Driving Center established on October 13, 2001, is the new name for Dubai Modern Driving Institute, which was set up more than a quarter century ago. The driving center, which is a member of the Saif Belhasa Group has witnessed exponential growth in the last few years and today boasts of an impressive fleet of over 600 training cars, 50 heavy duty trucks, 50 buses, 50 motorcycles, 25 light and heavy forklifts, backed by professional and well-trained team of instructors. Today BDC has set new standards in providing training courses for light motor vehicle, motorcycle, heavy vehicles, forklift safety operating, defensive driving and desert driving. In addition, BDC offers specialized courses like Incident Avoidance, Progressive Driver Development, DIAmond Advanced Motorists course, Chauffer course, UAE familiarisation course, Anti car hi-jacking, Surveillance security and pursuit driving courses. BDC has branches in Jumeirah, Al Wasl Club, Jebel Ali, Port Rashid, Karama and Century Mall, all of which have extensive shuttle transportation services to ferry students from their homes or offices.
