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Dubai’s RTA Unveils Solar-Powered “RailBus” Transit System
The autonomous vehicle will be built using 3D printing technologies and recyclable materials, and can accommodate up to 40 passengers.
Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has introduced the RailBus project — a high-tech, solar-powered and completely autonomous public transport system. The announcement of the concept, confirmed by Dubai’s government media office, aligns with the Emirate’s Net Zero 2050 strategy.
The RailBus is being championed by the government as a game-changer for urban mobility. The project was reviewed by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, alongside His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai. The review took place at the World Governments Summit, where Dubai’s RTA had its own stand.
The RailBus system is designed with sustainability in mind: Built using 3D printing technologies and recyclable materials, each carriage weighs around 7 tons and accommodates up to 40 passengers. The 11.5-meter-long and 2.65-meter-wide carriages can reach speeds of up to 100 km/h. The system is projected to cut operational costs by 20-30% compared to more conventional public transit types.
Dubai’s government confirmed that the RTA will conduct “technical studies” to determine optimal locations for pilot projects. The initiative follows an MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) signed between the RTA and US-based company RAILBUS Inc., which aims to develop the world’s first fully solar-powered public transport network.
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His Excellency Mattar Al Tayer, who briefed Sheikh Mohammed, highlighted the potential of RailBus: “The project reflects RTA’s commitment to fostering public-private partnerships and supporting start-ups in developing next-generation autonomous transport systems. RailBus is solar-powered, highly efficient, and cost-effective, integrating with Dubai’s public transport network. It also enhances first and last-mile connectivity, ensuring safe, smooth, and sustainable travel for residents and visitors in urban areas”.
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Visa’s Return To Syria Starts With A Test And A Bank In Lebanon
Foreign visitors will be the first users to benefit, but whether Syria’s own banks and cardholders follow is still an open question.
Visa is returning to Syria. Its first live international card transaction in the country was a test rather than a launch, and the milestone event ran through a Lebanese bank.
The acquirer (the bank on the merchant’s side of a card payment) was Fransabank Lebanon, with Paymera as the other named partner. Nadim Moujaes, who heads a Fransabank Group subsidiary, describes the test as both the culmination of “longstanding efforts to link Syria back to international payment networks” and “the first step in a larger path”.
Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa makes the first electronic payment in Syria using a @Visa card at a store in Damascus, following the lifting of US sanctions on Syria. pic.twitter.com/lpAN7nQ6Fc
— Tech Magazine (@TechMGZN) August 27, 2026
“We are excited to have successfully tested live transactions today as we plan to enable international visitors to use their Visa cards while in Syria,” says Leila Serhan, Visa’s senior vice president and group country manager for the North Africa, Levant and Pakistan region. Although a significant first step, that plan doesn’t come with a hard date for when a visitor’s card will work normally.
Mohammed Safwat Raslan, governor of the Central Bank of Syria, says the test paves the way for international card acceptance in Syria and that maintaining strong compliance, risk management and operational controls will remain essential. Serhan likewise stresses that Visa has worked within applicable legal, regulatory and compliance requirements. For a test transaction, it seems there was a great deal of attention paid to the rules, with the entire operation being carefully managed.
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The test is the latest step in a sequence that began in December 2025, when Visa announced a strategic roadmap to support Syria’s integration into the global digital economy. In February 2026 it hosted its first industry gathering of banks, ecosystem partners and policymakers in Damascus and, the same month, signed an agreement with Syria’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology in San Francisco.
Michel Kattouah, Paymera’s CEO, called the test “the return of international card acceptance,” but while that’s positive news, there’s no word yet on when a Syrian bank will issue a Visa card to a Syrian customer.
Visa’s Return To Syria Starts With A Test And A Bank In Lebanon
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