Al Qusais Bus Station is the RTA bus terminus for the Al Qusais–Muhaisnah side of north-east Dubai, standing on Algeria Street (D56) close to the Dubai–Sharjah border. It is the home base for the routes that carry this district’s workforce and residents across the city — to Gold Souq and Deira, to Karama and Bur Dubai, to Satwa, and on two long cross-town runs to Al Quoz and Jebel Ali. The labour-camp districts of Muhaisnah — the area everyone calls Sonapur — sit in the same corridor, which is why many regulars know this simply as the Sonapur bus station.
Al Qusais has Green Line Metro stations on its residential side, but none of them is at the bus station itself, and the district also has two other nearby termini — the Dubai Municipality Staff Housing terminus and Sheikh Rashid Colony in Al Qusais 1. This guide covers every route that terminates at the station itself, the nearby services that use the other termini, the timings picture, and the nearest Metro stations and their feeder links.
Al Qusais Bus Station Quick Facts
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Location | Algeria Street (D56), Muhaisnah 1 side of Al Qusais, Dubai — in the Sonapur labour-camp corridor, near the Dubai–Sharjah border |
| Operator | RTA Dubai (Roads and Transport Authority) |
| Main routes | 13A, 13B and 13D (Gold Souq), 33 (Al Karama), 32C (Satwa), 63E (Al Quoz), 97 (Jebel Ali), N30 night bus (Gold Souq) |
| Intercity routes | None — no buses to Sharjah or other emirates leave from this station, whatever some websites claim; see below |
| Nearest Metro | None at the station. The Green Line stations serving Al Qusais — e& (Etisalat, the line terminus) and Al Qusais — are a few kilometres away; the F07 feeder loop from Etisalat is the designed link |
| Payment | Nol card only — tap in when you board, tap out when you leave. No cash on any RTA bus |
| Station style | Open local terminus with numbered departure stands — RTA listings show station stops numbered 1 to 6 |
| Service hours | Routes run from around 5:00 AM to around midnight, with the N30 night bus covering part of the night |
Routes from Al Qusais Bus Station
The 13 Family: Gold Souq and Deira
The station’s busiest work is the run into Deira. Three variants of the 13 terminate here — the 13A, 13B and 13D — all running to Gold Souq Bus Station, Deira’s main terminus, but taking slightly different paths through Al Qusais, Al Nahda and Hor Al Anz. The 13B makes 32 stops and takes roughly 65 minutes end to end. Between the three variants, departures for Deira are frequent across the day. The variants follow different streets, so check S’hail for the one serving your stop.
Cross-Town Routes: Karama, Satwa and Jebel Ali
Three routes tie the station to the rest of old and new Dubai. The 33 runs from Karama Bus Station in Bur Dubai via BurJuman and Deira — a long cross-city ride of around 90 minutes. The 32C runs between Al Qusais Bus Station and Satwa Bus Station, the handy link for Satwa and Al Bada’a. And the 97 is the station’s longest run: to Parco Hypermarket in Jebel Ali Industrial Area, 19 stops and roughly an hour in free-flowing traffic.
The 63E: Al Qusais to Al Quoz
The 63E turns Al Qusais Bus Station into one end of Dubai’s great industrial-to-industrial link. It runs to Al Quoz Bus Station via Ras Al Khor and the Muhaisnah labour-camp corridor — 41 stops, and heavily used at shift changes. It is a long ride across several fare zones, so allow around an hour and a half, more in the peaks, and check your card balance before you board.
| Route | Destination | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| 13A | Gold Souq Bus Station, Deira | One of the three Deira variants |
| 13B | Gold Souq Bus Station, Deira | Deira via Al Nahda and Hor Al Anz — 32 stops, roughly 65 minutes |
| 13D | Gold Souq Bus Station, Deira | The third Deira variant — check S’hail for its streets |
| 33 | Al Karama Bus Station | Bur Dubai via BurJuman and Deira — around 90 minutes |
| 32C | Satwa Bus Station | The direct link to Satwa and Al Bada’a |
| 63E | Al Quoz Bus Station | Industrial-to-industrial link via Ras Al Khor and Muhaisnah |
| 97 | Jebel Ali Industrial Area (Parco Hypermarket) | The cross-city run to Jebel Ali — 19 stops |
| N30 | Gold Souq Bus Station, Deira | Night service to Deira |
Two more termini sit a short distance away in the same corridor — just as useful, but they do not use this station. The Dubai Municipality Staff Housing terminus in Muhaisnah 2 is the end of the 13 from Gold Souq (a close relative of the variants above, finishing at the staff housing instead) and of the 17 from Sabkha Bus Station in Deira. In Al Qusais 1, the C18 from Oud Metha terminates at Sheikh Rashid Colony after around 77 minutes via BurJuman, Abu Hail and Stadium.
One correction, because several Al Qusais guides get this wrong: no intercity buses leave from Al Qusais Bus Station. There is no E-bus to Sharjah, Ajman or Abu Dhabi from here — the E301, E306, E307 and E400 services some websites list for this station do not call here at all. For Sharjah, the nearest intercity departure point is Stadium Bus Station, a short bus ride away, where the E308 runs to Al Jubail; the other intercity buses leave from the Deira and Bur Dubai terminals.
Al Qusais Bus Station Timings
There is no single station timetable — every route keeps its own schedule — but the pattern follows the district’s working day. The first buses leave at around 5:00 AM (the 33, for example, runs from 5:00 AM to 11:30 PM), services peak at the morning shift change, ease off mid-day, and surge again in the late afternoon. The last departures on the main routes run to around midnight, and the N30 night bus covers part of the night. Friday and holiday patterns are thinner, and timings shift during Ramadan. For live departures, check RTA‘s S’hail app on the day rather than relying on any printed list — including this one.
How to Reach Al Qusais Bus Station
By Metro: e& (Etisalat) Station, Then a Feeder Bus
Be clear about the geography first: the bus station is not at a Metro station, and it is not a sensible walk from one. The Green Line stations that serve Al Qusais — e& (long known as Etisalat, and still the line’s northern terminus) and Al Qusais — sit a few kilometres away across the district. The connection RTA designed for this corridor is the F07 feeder: a circular service out of Etisalat Bus Station, beside e& Metro, looping through Muhaisnah 1, the labour camps along Algeria Street and the Dubai Municipality Staff Housing before returning to the Metro. Its stops serve the same camp corridor as the bus station, so for most Sonapur addresses it is the practical Metro link — check S’hail for the F07 stop closest to you. The 62A from Al Qusais Metro and the F22/F24 feeders from Stadium Metro serve the district’s other termini.
By Bus
Any route in the table above will bring you to the station itself: the 13 family from Gold Souq, the 33 from Karama, the 32C from Satwa, the 63E from Al Quoz and the 97 from Jebel Ali. For a specific camp or housing block, a street stop on the 13, 17, F07 or C18 may be closer to your door.
By Taxi or Car
Taxis know the station as “Al Qusais Bus Station” — say Algeria Street, Muhaisnah 1, near Sonapur, if the driver needs a landmark. By car, the approach is Algeria Street (D56) itself, off Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road or from the Sharjah side. Two warnings: Algeria Street and the camp roads crawl at the morning and evening shift changes, and parking near the station is limited and mostly serves the surrounding businesses.
Facilities and Tickets
Al Qusais is a working local terminus, not a terminal building, so keep your expectations practical: buses depart from numbered stands (RTA listings show the station’s stops numbered 1 to 6), with shaded waiting areas and route information at the stands. Check your route’s stand and live departure time in the S’hail app before you arrive, especially at shift-change times when several routes load at once.
Payment is by Nol card only on every bus from the station, at RTA’s standard Dubai zone fares — AED 3 within one zone, AED 5 across two zones and AED 7.50 across three or more, deducted when you tap out. The 63E and 97 cross several zones, so a low balance is the most common problem here. Do not count on topping up at the station itself: top up at a Metro station (e& and Al Qusais are the nearest), online, or in the Nol Pay app. Supermarkets and cafeterias line the Algeria Street corridor around the station.
Who Uses Al Qusais Bus Station
Two crowds share this station. The first is the workforce of the Sonapur corridor: Muhaisnah’s labour camps and the Al Qusais industrial areas house tens of thousands of workers, and the buses are timed around their shifts — which is why the 63E, the 97 and the 13 family are packed early in the morning and again in the evening. The second is the residential side: families from Al Qusais, Al Nahda and Al Twar riding the 13 variants to the Deira souqs, the 33 to Karama or the 32C to Satwa.
Travel Tips for Al Qusais Bus Station
- Avoid the shift-change crush: The station, Algeria Street and the camp corridors are at their busiest between roughly 6:00–8:00 AM and 5:00–8:00 PM. If your trip is flexible, aim for mid-morning or early afternoon instead.
- Know which terminus you need: Al Qusais Bus Station, the Dubai Municipality Staff Housing terminus (routes 13 and 17) and Sheikh Rashid Colony in Al Qusais 1 (route C18) are three different places in the same district. Confirm your terminus in S’hail first.
- Check your stand, not just your route: Several routes load at once from different numbered stands. Confirm your stand in S’hail — at peak times the queue, not the timetable, decides who gets a seat.
- Top up before you come: There is no Metro station here to rescue a low balance, and the 63E and 97 cross several zones. Arrive with a Nol card loaded for the full fare plus your onward ride.
- Do not wait for a Sharjah bus that never comes: No intercity buses leave from this station, whatever some websites say. For Sharjah, ride to Stadium Bus Station for the E308, or take the 13 family or 33 to the Deira and Bur Dubai terminals.
- Use the F07 for the Metro: The walk from the Green Line stations is long and, from May to September, punishing in the heat. The F07 feeder loop from Etisalat (e&) Metro covers the camp corridor directly.
Related Stations and Routes
- Sabkha Bus Station — route 17’s Deira terminus
- Karama Bus Station — routes 33, C3 & X25 and the E304 corridor
- Al Quoz Bus Station — the other end of the 63E industrial link
Where is Al Qusais Bus Station located?
On Algeria Street (D56) on the Muhaisnah 1 side of Al Qusais, in the Sonapur labour-camp corridor near the Dubai–Sharjah border. It is not the same place as the Dubai Municipality Staff Housing terminus in Muhaisnah 2, or as the bus stops beside Al Qusais Metro Station.
Which buses go from Al Qusais Bus Station to Deira?
Three variants of the 13 — the 13A, 13B and 13D — all run from the station to Gold Souq Bus Station in Deira. The 13B makes 32 stops and takes roughly 65 minutes. Do not confuse them with the plain 13, which runs between Gold Souq and the Dubai Municipality Staff Housing terminus and does not use this station.
Is there a bus from Al Qusais Bus Station to Sharjah?
No direct bus. Despite what several websites claim, no intercity E-routes — not the E306, E307 or E400 — leave from Al Qusais Bus Station. For Sharjah, ride a local bus to Stadium Bus Station and take the E308 to Al Jubail, or ride the 13 family or the 33 to the Deira and Bur Dubai terminals.
What is the nearest Metro station to Al Qusais Bus Station?
There is no Metro station at the bus station. The Green Line stations serving Al Qusais — e& (Etisalat), the line terminus, and Al Qusais — are a few kilometres away, too far to walk comfortably. The F07 feeder loops from Etisalat Bus Station, beside e& Metro, through the Muhaisnah camp corridor the station serves.
How do I get from Al Qusais Bus Station to Al Quoz?
Take the 63E direct. It runs from Al Qusais Bus Station to Al Quoz Bus Station via Ras Al Khor and the Muhaisnah corridor, with 41 stops. Allow around an hour and a half — more at shift-change peaks — and make sure your Nol card covers a multi-zone fare.
Is Al Qusais Bus Station the same as Sonapur Bus Station?
The same place in everyday speech. Sonapur is the long-standing nickname for the Muhaisnah labour-camp district the station stands in, so workers and taxi drivers often call it the Sonapur bus station. In RTA listings, search for Al Qusais Bus Station.
What time is the first and last bus from Al Qusais Bus Station?
It depends on the route. The first buses leave at around 5:00 AM — the 33 runs from 5:00 AM to 11:30 PM — and the last departures on the main routes run to around midnight. The N30 night bus covers part of the night towards Gold Souq. Check live departures in RTA’s S’hail app on the day.
Can I buy or top up a Nol card at Al Qusais Bus Station?
Do not count on it. Al Qusais is a simple open terminus, so arrive with a topped-up Nol card. You can top up at e& or Al Qusais Metro station, online, or through the Nol Pay app; every bus from the station is Nol only and cash is never accepted.
Daniyal Sheikh
Transport Editor, UAE Travel Hub
Dubai daily commuter covering the Metro, Nol cards, RTA buses and intercity routes across all seven emirates — every fare and timing checked against official RTA, ITC and SRTA sources.
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