Abu Dhabi Streets

Abu Dhabi seeks sense of direction

From the Globe and Mail, May 4, 2009

This bustling city operates on an unofficial jerry-rigged system of landmarks, colloquial street names and post office box numbers that residents, businesses, courier companies and postal services rely on to operate smoothly.

But those days are numbered, as the municipality is expected to unveil a new addressing plan in the coming months, designed to accompany the centre's ambitious expansion goals to accommodate a population that is expected to triple to more than three million people by 2030.

Although Abu Dhabi already has an addressing system in place, one that operates on properly numbered streets, sectors and zones, it is not one with which most cab drivers are acquainted.

Asking for a lift to Sheikh Zayed the First Street will most often be met with a quizzical expression. Mention Electra, which is not on maps and does not appear to be referred to in any way on the street itself, and the driver will smile, nod, and hit the gas.

Calls to emergency services are handled the same way, which is why the U.S. Overseas Security Advisory Council advises that those who move to the city prepare a set of workable directions that can be kept by the phone, and that they make sure the emergency operator fully understands them. (Mail is delivered to post-office boxes, and many people use their work addresses.) All that could soon change as Abu Dhabi implements a new addressing system. The city has hired Norwegian city-planning consultancy Norplan, in a two-year, $3.3-million contract that has involved borrowing elements from major metropolitan centres including Toronto, Manhattan, Paris and Doha, to come up with a plan that works. Dubai, 90 minutes down the road, is working on a similar plan and has already asked its residents for input on new street names.

For now, though, most expatriates just muddle through until they get it right.

When this reporter makes an order for takeout food, it is directed to “the water tank area, new white building, near the White Cat Laundry, above White Wave Furniture, between Muroor and Airport Road.”