Abu Dhabi Maritime has launched a digital service to streamline the management of Abu Dhabi’s slipways — ramps for moving boats and other water crafts to and from the water — while also easing congestion at peak times.
Most importantly, the new fully interactive portal, developed by Maqta Gateway, Abu Dhabi Ports’ dedicated digital subsidiary, will provide direct digital access to all slipways owned and managed by Abu Dhabi Maritime, and services available at those locations. The portal will enable the emirate’s recreational maritime users to book their slipway reservations and submit payments from the comfort of their computer or mobile device, while also providing key information regarding parking and an additional suite of services soon to be added.
Coinciding with the launch of the online portal, Abu Dhabi Maritime has also recently opened its three slipways at Al Sadr, North Yas, and Al Zahiyah, which as part of their initial stage of development, provide the maritime community with vehicle and trailer parking services, along with the use of slipway ramps and pontoons.
As part of the second phase of their development, Abu Dhabi Maritime will expand the slipways’ scope to include such services as engine and hull flushing, jet-ski rentals, and food services, rendering the slipways full-service locations. The three slipways are available for booking via the online portal.
The new additions brought the total number of publicly available slipways in the emirate to 26. In addition to providing the locations of all slipways available for the public, Abu Dhabi Maritime’s website also hosts information on working hours and contact details of operators. While some of the slipways within the emirate will be utilised solely by the public sector, a select few fall under the purview of Abu Dhabi’s thriving private-sector market.
Possessing advanced infrastructure that will safeguard the safety of users while providing them with additional services, management of the slipways falls in line with the vision of the leadership that ensure the safe and convenient use of the emirate’s waterways.
Furthermore, by increasing the ratio of slipways in Abu Dhabi to a globally competitive 485 boat/slipway, which is comparable to other major cities like New York that has a ratio of 1480 boat/slipway and the State of Florida with 445 boat/slipway, ensures recreational users can enjoy quick and convenient access to the waterways in Abu Dhabi.
Captain Saif Al Mheiri, Managing Director of Abu Dhabi Maritime, said: “An important element of our commitment to unleashing Abu Dhabi’s full potential as a world-leading maritime capital is listening to, and delivering on, the needs of our broader maritime community.
“With the introduction of our new online portal, we are not only marking the first step in digitising access to our waterways but are also helping ease access to all slipways located within the emirate by empowering our marine users with convenient booking options and choices.
“We believe that the addition of our three new publicly-accessible slipways at Al Sadr, North Yas, Rabdan, and Al Zahiya locations will be a game changer for our maritime community. By providing additional slipway options to our recreational users, we are protecting our coastline and vulnerable habitats from unsanctioned launches and are offering value-added business opportunities for private sector operators. This is a win-win for all those involved, and we look forward to working together in delivering additional infrastructure developments for our maritime community.”
