Since November 2015, Public transportation in Muscat has been revamped with a bus

network connecting most important parts of the city with a fleet of modern Mwasalat
(earlier Oman National Transport Company (ONTC) buses. Mwasalat buses procured from
VDL of The Netherlands and MAN of Germany have several hi-tech features, including
free Wi-Fi. Route 1 (Ruwi-Mabela) serves people travelling major shopping
destinations (Oman Avenues Mall, Muscat Grand Mall, Qurum City Centre, Muscat City
Centre, Markaz al Bhaja) and Muscat Airport. Route 2 (Ruwi-Wadi Kabir) serves the
residential and industrial district of Wadi Kabir. Route 3 (Ruwi-Wadi Adei) serves
the downmarket residential belt of Wadi Adei. Route 4 (Ruwi-Mattrah) serves the
tourist destination of Muttrah Corniche, Al Alam Palace, Muttrah Fort, National
Museum and Port Sultan Qaboos and churches/temples. Route 5 (Ruwi-Amerat) serves
the rapidly developing Amerat suburb. Route 6 (Ruwi-SQU&KOM) serves the student
community of Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) and the office commuters of Knowledge
Oasis Muscat (KOM). Route 7 serves the three major malls in Muscat - Al Araimi
Boulevard, Mall of Muscat and Markaz al Bhaja and Muscat City Centre. Route 8
serves Al Khuwair and Al Mouj Integrated Complex Route 9 serves Ansab and Misfah
industrial area. Route 10 serves Seeb Souq and Mawelah Vegetable Market. Route 12
serves Oman Convention and Exhibition, Ghala areas. Route 14 serves PDO, Qurm
Natural Park, Qurm City Centre, Khoula Hospital. Routes 1b and 1A are special buses
to Muscat International Airport.

There is no rail or metro network in the country. Several forms of public transport
are popular in Oman. Most popular are the "Baiza" buses, so named for the lower
denomination of the Omani rial, the baiza (an adaptation of the Indian lower
denomination paisa). These are relatively inexpensive and service all major
roadways, as well as a wide and loose network of smaller byways in the greater
Muscat metropolitan area, opportunistically dropping off and picking up passengers
at any location. Less popular and slightly more expensive are large public buses,
coloured red and green, whose service is limited to major roadways and point-to-
point travel routes between Oman's major cities and towns. Taxis, also colour-coded
orange and white, provide semi-personal transportation in the form of both
individual hire and the same opportunistic roadway service as Baiza buses.

Baiza buses and colour-coded orange-and-white taxis are unmetered, after several
government initiatives to introduce meters were rejected. The fare is set by way of
negotiation, although taxi drivers usually adhere to certain unwritten rules for
fares within the city. In many countries, one is advised to negotiate a fare with
the driver before getting into a taxi. However, in Oman, asking for the fare
beforehand often demonstrates a passenger's newness and unfamiliarity with the
area. One should always find out the normally accepted fare for one's journey from
one's hotel or host before looking for a taxi. Taxis will also generally take
passengers to locations out of the city, including Sohar, Buraimi and Dubai.

A rail network named Oman Rail is expected to be completed by 2022.[citation

needed] This will connect Oman with the GCC countries.

Culture
Main article: Culture of Oman

The traditional Dhow, an enduring symbol of Oman[44]

Outwardly, Oman shares many of the cultural characteristics of its Arab neighbours,
particularly those in the Gulf Cooperation Council.[45] Despite these similarities,
important factors make Oman unique in the Middle East.[45] These result as much
from geography and history as from culture and economics.[45] The relatively recent
and artificial nature of the state in Oman makes it difficult to describe a
national culture;[45] however, sufficient cultural heterogeneity exists within its
national boundaries to make Oman distinct from other Arab States of the Persian
Gulf.[45] Oman's cultural diversity is greater than that of its Arab neighbours,
given its historical expansion to the Swahili Coast and the Indian Ocean.[45]
Oman has a long tradition of shipbuilding, as maritime travel played a major role
in the Omanis' ability to stay in contact with the civilisations of the ancient
world. Sur was one of the most famous shipbuilding cities of the Indian Ocean. The
Al Ghanja ship takes one whole year to build. Other types of Omani ship include As
Sunbouq and Al Badan.[46]

In March 2016, archaeologists working off Al-Hallaniyah Island identified a

shipwreck believed to be that of the Esmeralda from Vasco da Gama's 1502–1503
fleet. The wreck was initially discovered in 1998. Later underwater excavations
took place between 2013 and 2015 through a partnership between the Oman Ministry of
Heritage and Culture and Blue Water Recoveries Ltd., a shipwreck recovery company.
The vessel was identified through such artifacts as a "Portuguese coin minted for
trade with India (one of only two coins of this type known to exist) and stone
cannonballs engraved with what appear to be the initials of Vincente Sodré, da
Gama's maternal uncle and the commander of the Esmeralda."[47]

Notable people
Mahesh Bhupathi (b. 1974), Indian tennis player, studied at the Indian School,
Muscat
Sarah-Jane Dias (b. 1974), Indian Actress, studied at the Indian School, Muscat
Isla Fisher (b. 1976), Australian actress, born to Scottish parents and lived in
Australia
Ali Al-Habsi (b. 1981), Omani professional footballer, captain of the Oman national
and goalkeeper for Saudi club Al Hilal
Sneha Ullal (b. 1987), Indian Bollywood Actress, studied at the Indian School,
Muscat
Avicii (b. 1989), Swedish musician and DJ Tim Bergling died in Muscat on April 20,
2018 from self-inflicted injuries from a broken wine bottle
See also
flag Oman portal
Old Muscat
Bibliography
Barth, Hans-Jörg; Benno Böer (2002). Sabkha Ecosystems: The Arabian Peninsula and
Adjacent Countries. Springer. ISBN 978-1-4020-0504-6.
Fahlbusch, Erwin; Geoffrey William Bromiley; David B. Barrett (1999). The
Encyclopedia of Christianity. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. ISBN 978-0-8028-2415-8.
Forster, Charles, The Historical Geography of Arabia: Or, The Patriarchal Evidences
of Revealed Religion : a Memoir, Duncan and Malcolm, 1844
Ghazanfar, Shahina A.; Martin Fisher (1998). Vegetation of the Arabian Peninsula.
Springer. ISBN 978-0-7923-5015-6.
Kechichian, Joseph A. (1995). Oman and the World: The Emergence of an Independent
Foreign Policy. Great Britain: RAND Corporation. ISBN 978-0-8330-2332-2.
Long, David E.; Reich, Bernard; Gasiorowski, Mark (2007). The Government and
Politics of the Middle East and North Africa. Westview Press. ISBN 978-0-8133-4361-
7.
Miles, Samuel Barrett; Robin Bidwell. The Countries and Tribes of the Persian Gulf.
Garnet & Ithaca Press.
Peterson, J. E. (2007). "Chronology". Historical Muscat. Brill. p. 117+. ISBN 978-
90-04-15266-3.
Phillips, Wendell (1966). Unknown Oman. D. McKay Co. p. 4.
Potter, Lawrence; Sick, Gary (2002). Security in the Persian Gulf. Macmillan. ISBN
978-0-312-23950-3.
Rice, Michael (1994). The Archeology of the Arabian Gulf. Routledge. ISBN 978-0-
415-03268-1.
Room, Adrian (2003). Placenames of the World: Origins and Meanings of the Names for
Over 5000 Natural Features, Countries, Capitals, Territories, Cities and Historic
Sites. McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-1814-5.
Salm, Rodney V.; Rolf A.C. Jensen; Vassili Papastavrou (1993). Marine Fauna of
Oman. IUCN. ISBN 978-2-8317-0180-6.
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"UNdata - country profile - Oman".
"The population of the Sultanate by the end of May 2015".
‫الدراسات االجتماعية‬. Ministry of Education, Sultanate of Oman.
Forster (1844), p.231.
Forster (1844), p.241.
Forster (1844), p.173.
Forster (1844), p.173
Miles (1997), p.468.
Hailman (2006), p.49.
Philips (1966), p.4.
Room (2003), p.246.
Rice (1994), p.255-256
Forster (1844), p.234.
Potter (2002), p.41.
Miles (1997), p.167
Miles (1997), p. 196.
Miles (1997), p.256.
Miles (1997), p.147.
Cotheal, Alexander I. (2008-01-17). "Treaty between the United States of America
and the Sultân of Masḳaṭ: The Arabic Text". Journal of the American Oriental
Society (free)|format= requires |url= (help). JSTOR. 4 (1854): 341–343. JSTOR
592284.
JE Peterson's Britannica entry (1990), p.6.
Long (2007), p.188.
Middle East Policy (2004), p.126.
Middle East Policy (2004), p.128
View of the city and city walls in 1904 (Click on photo to enlarge); Muscat's wall
and gate.
"Mountains in Oman". Ministry of Tourism, Sultanate of Oman.
Darke, Diane (2010). Oman: The Brad Travel Guide. Bradt Travel Guides. ISBN
9781841623320. Retrieved 15 March 2015.
Miles (1997), p. 399.
Ghazanfar (1998), p. 80.
Salm (1993), p. 52
Miles (1997), p. 410.
Barth (2002), p. 292.
"Seeb Climate Normals 1961-1990". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Retrieved December 19, 2012.
"Amtek". Amtek.ae. Retrieved 2014-02-18.
"Contact". Galfar.com. Retrieved 2014-02-18.
"Contact Us". Omanair.com. Archived from the original on 2012-11-20.
Oman Census (2003), p.6.
Oman Census (2003), p.9.
Oman Census(2003), Data and Other Indicators
British Parliamentary Papers (1876), p. 189.
Kechichian (1995), p. 215.
Fahlbusch (1999), p. 829.
Peterson (2004), p. 34.
"Museums". Omanet.om. Archived from the original on February 1, 2009. Retrieved
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"Culture of Oman". Sultanate of Oman.
Common, Richard K. "Barriers To Developing 'Leadership' In The Sultanate Of Oman"
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Romey, Kristin (14 March 2016). "Shipwreck Discovered from Explorer Vasco da
Gama's Fleet". National Geographic. Retrieved 15 March 2016.
Further reading
See also: Bibliography of the history of Muscat, Oman
omancensus.net (PDF)
2010 Preliminary Results (PDF)
Census Administration. "Final Results of the Census 2003" (PDF). Ministry of the
National Economy, Government of Oman. Archived from the original (PDF) on October
3, 2008. Retrieved 2008-09-17.
Census Administration. "Data & Indicators of the Population". Ministry of the
National Economy, Government of Oman. Archived from the original on 2008-06-13.
Retrieved 2008-09-17.
Parliamentary Papers. London: United Kingdom Parliament. 1876.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Muscat.
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Muscat.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Official Ministry Of Tourism site
omancensus.net (PDF)