Dubai restricts moving trucks on Al Meydan Street, Al Qudra Street and through the Airport Tunnel around the clock, and on Sheikh Zayed Road and Beirut Street from 6am to 10pm daily. The rules took effect on 1 October 2026. Emirates Road (E611) is exempt, which is why most Dubai moves now run on it.
Here is how that bites. You booked the movers for 9am on a Saturday. The truck is loaded by 11am. Then it sits, because the route your mover planned down Sheikh Zayed Road is closed to it until 10pm, and nobody told you at the quoting stage. You are now paying waiting time on a crew of four, your DEWA activation slot is gone, and the lift booking in the new building expires at 6pm.
The restrictions are not a secret. Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority and Dubai Police announced them in late September 2026, and the rules were reported by The National on 27 September 2026 and Gulf News on 26 September 2026. But almost no moving company has updated its quote template, and the cost of that lands on you.
Which Dubai roads are closed to trucks around the clock?
Four locations in Dubai are restricted to trucks 24 hours a day, with no time window at all. A moving truck cannot use them at any hour, on any day, without a permit. The table below lists them exactly as the RTA announcement set them out.
Al Qudra Street is the one that catches villa moves. A move out of Arabian Ranches or Damac Hills has historically used it as the natural exit, and that exit is now gone for a loaded truck.
What are the truck hours on Sheikh Zayed Road in Dubai?
Sheikh Zayed Road is restricted to trucks from 6am to 10pm every day — a 16-hour daily window in which a loaded moving truck may not use it. Beirut Street carries the same hours, and so do three named residential areas. The table sets out the 6am-to-10pm group.
Oud Al Muteena, Muhaisnah and Al Mizhar are villa-heavy communities where a family move means a three-tonne truck on a residential street. All three are named in the announcement specifically, so a daytime move in any of them needs a permit, not a plan.
Which Dubai roads have peak-hour truck bans, and what are the times?
A separate and narrower rule applies three peak windows — 6:30am to 8:30am, 1:30pm to 3:30pm and 5:30pm to 8pm — to four roads. On Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Road the restriction runs between Ras Al Khor Road and the Sharjah border in both directions. The table lists all four.
Read the two rules separately, because the reporting blurred them. The three peak windows belong to Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Road, Damascus Street, Amman Street and Airport Street. Sheikh Zayed Road does not have peak windows — it has the flat 6am-to-10pm restriction above. Mixing the two is the most common error in the coverage of this announcement.
Which Dubai road is exempt from the truck restrictions?
Emirates Road (E611) is exempt from the truck restrictions. Emirates Road is the only road the RTA announcement names as exempt, and it is now the default spine for any Dubai move that has to happen in daylight. A mover who routes an emirate-to-emirate job down Emirates Road rather than Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Road is doing it for a reason.
Route choice matters when you are comparing quotes. A Dubai-to-Sharjah or Dubai-to-Ajman move priced on an E611 route is a legal daytime move. The same move priced down Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Road at 2pm is not, and the risk sits with whoever is driving.
How do you get a permit to move a truck in restricted hours in Dubai?
Companies that need truck movements during restricted periods apply for a Right of Way Services permit — ROWS — through the RTA website. Gulf News named the permit directly in its 26 September 2026 report. The permit belongs to the transport company, not to you, which is the detail that decides whether your daytime move is legal.
So the question to ask a mover is not "can you come at 10am?" Any mover will say yes. The question is whether they hold a ROWS permit for the road your move actually uses.
✓ Which roads will the truck use between my two addresses?
✓ Is any of those roads restricted at the time you have booked me in?
✓ Do you hold a ROWS permit, and will you send it with the quote?
✓ If the route has to change on the day, who pays for the extra hours — you or me?
Does a truck restriction change what a Dubai move costs?
A restriction changes the hour of your move, and the hour of your move changes the price. An overnight or late-evening slot on Sheikh Zayed Road is outside normal crew hours. A permit application takes administrative time. A longer route via Emirates Road adds fuel and driver hours. None of that is a scam — it is the cost of a legal move — but it should appear on the quote in writing, before you sign.
For what a Dubai move actually costs by home size, and the line items a quote should itemise, read our Dubai moving cost guide. If you are moving out of a villa, the villa movers guide covers community access permits, which are a separate requirement from the RTA rules on this page.
Get a mover who has read the rules
The movers who will cost you money on this are the ones quoting the same price, for the same 10am slot, that they quoted in August. The ones worth hiring will tell you which road they are using and show you the permit. You cannot tell them apart from a phone call, which is exactly the problem verification solves.
TaskRight is a verified, zero-commission home services platform in the UAE — every mover on the platform is RightPro-verified, and you hire and pay them direct. We take nothing from the job, so the price you are quoted is the price the mover set. Post the move once and compare the answers you get back on route, timing and permits.
👉 Compare verified movers in Dubai →
Related reading:
Dubai truck restrictions and moving: your questions answered
Which roads in Dubai are banned for trucks 24 hours a day?
Dubai restricts trucks on Al Meydan Street, Al Qudra Street, the Airport Tunnel and all crossings 24 hours a day, with no permitted window. A moving truck needs a permit to use any of them at any hour. The restrictions took effect on 1 October 2026 and were announced by the RTA and Dubai Police.
What time can a moving truck use Sheikh Zayed Road in Dubai?
A moving truck can use Sheikh Zayed Road in Dubai between 10pm and 6am. The road is restricted to trucks from 6am to 10pm daily, a 16-hour window. Beirut Street carries the same hours, as do the residential areas of Oud Al Muteena, Muhaisnah and Al Mizhar, so a daytime move there needs a permit.
Is Emirates Road exempt from Dubai's truck restrictions?
Emirates Road, the E611, is exempt from Dubai's truck restrictions and is the only road the RTA announcement names as exempt. Emirates Road is therefore the practical route for a Dubai move that has to run in daylight hours, including emirate-to-emirate moves towards Sharjah, Ajman or Ras Al Khaimah.
What permit does a Dubai moving company need to drive in restricted hours?
A Dubai moving company needs a Right of Way Services permit, known as ROWS, applied for through the RTA website. Gulf News named the permit in its 26 September 2026 report. The permit is held by the transport company rather than the customer, so ask your mover to send it with the quote.
Which peak hours are trucks banned in Dubai?
Trucks are banned in Dubai during three peak windows: 6:30am to 8:30am, 1:30pm to 3:30pm and 5:30pm to 8pm. The three windows apply to Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Road between Ras Al Khor Road and the Sharjah border in both directions, and to Damascus Street, Amman Street and Airport Street.
Do Dubai's truck restrictions make a house move more expensive?
Dubai's truck restrictions can raise the cost of a move, because a legal slot may fall outside normal crew hours, a ROWS permit takes administrative time, and an Emirates Road detour adds driver hours. Ask for those items in writing on the quote rather than discovering them as waiting time on the day.
Last updated: October 2026
