Dubai Plans are under way to extend Dubai Metro's Green Line to link Academic City and a number of other areas within five years to benefit hundreds of thousands of residents in the city, a Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) official told Gulf News Tuesday.
The announcement came as the Metro notched yet another Guinness World Record as the longest driverless Metro network in the world at 74.695 kilometres — the combined stretch of the Metro's Red and Green Lines.
World record
The achievement is yet another feather in the cap for Dubai as Dubai Metro's Red Line had set a Guinness World Record as the longest driverless Metro line in the world extending 52 km, in September 2011.
Plans are under way to extend the Green Line to cover Academic City, International City and Lagoons within the next five years, Adnan Al Hammadi, CEO of the Rail Agency at the RTA, said in an interview.
"Connecting to Academic City alone will benefit an over 30,000-strong student community," he said.
"The extension plan, drawn up after two separate studies, already has the approval of RTA's board of directors as well as the blessing of the government."
Expansion plan
The plan is one of the key projects outlined in Dubai's first Rail Master Plan, which is almost ready after three years of work and will soon be submitted to the government for approval.
The Rail Master Plan has been drawn up in line with Dubai's Vision 2030. Once approved, RTA will deploy its resources for individual projects in the plan. "But the schedules may change as the plans are revised every two years based on urban development studies," Al Hammadi said.
There is also a plan to extend the Red Line up to the Dubai-Abu Dhabi border subject to development projects along the route, Al Hammadi said. However, the Green Line will be accorded priority.
Mattar Al Tayer, chairman of the board and executive director of the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), received the Guinness Certificate from Talal Omar, regional director of Guinness World Records in the Middle East, at the RTA headquarters on Monday.
Al Tayer dedicated the achievement to His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, calling him the driving force behind the Dubai Metro project.
"The implementation of the project is a true testament to the vision of Shaikh Mohammad in uplifting the infrastructure of Dubai emirate. He has been closely monitoring and directing all phases of the work progress in the project, and endorsed the suitable route from several alternatives presented. He envisioned the use of Metro as a backbone linking various parts of Dubai city enabling smooth mobility while enjoying a panoramic view of the city's landmarks.
