Sajjad Ahmad, Deputy Business Editor

To supports the car rental market throughout Dubai around the clock, the first Emirati ‘Pay Per Minute’ Car Sharing platform ‘Yaldi’ was launched in Dubai.

The Yaldi smart application has been licensed by the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) in Dubai, and is the first Emirati business specialising in the Pay Per Minute car rental sector. By downloading and using the smart app, you can now rent a car inclusive of fuel and parking from as little as 99 fils per minute.

Yaldi is a subsidiary of Al Wejdaniyah Transport Solutions. A business that was formed by Emirati entrepreneur, Hussain Al Tahri, which is a proud member of the ‘Mohammed Bin Rashid Foundation for Supporting Youth Projects’ and also the ‘Government Procurement Program’.

The purpose built Yaldi smartphone application is available to download for both Apple and Android and once downloaded, customers will verify and top up their driving wallet using a credit card.

The process is very fast and within just a few minutes, customers will be able to locate their nearest car and start driving. Once the ride has finished, the ride cost gets deducted from the customers electronic wallet.

Hussain Al Tahri, CEO for Yaldi, said that the business aims to grow its own fleet quickly as it supports the car rental market throughout Dubai around the clock.

He added that the company strategy is to convert to a minimum 10% electric fleet during 2023, making sure that Yaldi keeps pace with the UAE’s sustainability drive.

The support of a key strategic partnership with Al Habtoor Motors, has enabled the fleet of brand new cars, including Mitsubishi and JAC to be placed immediately for customer use. He added that whilst the application currently focuses on, and covers only Dubai, there are plans to expand at State level, as he sees an increase in demand for customers requiring easy to access mobility solutions throughout the region.

The ability to rent for minutes, as opposed to weeks on months is clearly being seen by many as a very convenient option.

He pointed out that the development of the Yaldi Smart application took around one year to complete with the key emphasis being customer satisfaction. Users not only want the ease of downloading and registration, but also application needs to provide a first class user experience. Customers are encouraged to rate their experience so that Yaldi is able to maintain and improve service levels – at the same time customers are also able to benefit from a rewards program called ‘Yaldeets’ where bonus top ups are added to user wallets, essentially allowing free driving.

He finished by saying that the mobility sector continues to change. We must ensure that we develop and evolve to stay ahead of those changes