RTA buses carried 197 million riders in 2025 — and the intercity spine runs from Al Ghubaiba, Ibn Battuta and Al Jafiliya: Abu Dhabi in two hours for AED 25, Al Ain, Sharjah and Hatta beyond.
The E100 runs Al Ghubaiba to Abu Dhabi Central Bus Station in about two hours, every twenty minutes at peak, from 4:20 in the morning to past midnight — AED 25 by nol card, no cash. The E101 covers the same corridor from Ibn Battuta for the Marina side, and the E102 links Al Jafiliya with Mussafah and Abu Dhabi airport.
Al Ghubaiba sits on the metro Green Line in Bur Dubai; Ibn Battuta on the Red Line by the mall. Both stations have air-conditioned halls, and intercity e-tickets come with a dedicated boarding lane.
Beyond the capital corridor: the E201 to Al Ain from Al Ghubaiba, the E307/E308 to Sharjah from Deira City Centre and Stadium, the E16 to Hatta from Union. Private operators run the long Gulf routes.
Practical note: Friday and holiday frequencies shift, Ramadan timetables compress, and the E100 queues build after 17:00 — board early or take the E101 from Ibn Battuta where seats last longer.
The E100 is the region’s great travel bargain: 150 kilometres of highway for AED 25 in a clean air-conditioned coach. Use it for Abu Dhabi day trips — Grand Mosque in the morning, Louvre after lunch, back for dinner — and board at Al Ghubaiba only if you are already in Old Dubai; from the Marina side the E101 at Ibn Battuta saves forty minutes. Two honest cautions: luggage space is overhead-rack scale, so airport transfers with suitcases belong in a taxi; and the Friday-evening run back from Abu Dhabi fills fast — buy the e-ticket and don’t aim for the last bus. For Sharjah at rush hour, the bus beats the taxi only off-peak; at 18:00 the E307 sits in the same jam as everyone else.
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