Road work delay jams Deira

Dubai: Motorists in Deira face heavy traffic congestion especially during peak morning and evening hours due to delays in the completion of the second phase of the Al Ittihad Road Improvement Project.

Long queues of vehicles are seen every morning snaking up to Sharjah on Al Ittihad Road starting from Dnata intersection and from the unfinished interchange linking Shaikh Rashid Road and Airport Road while going towards Al Garhoud Bridge.

Similarly, motorists coming from the Airport Road towards Al Maktoum Road also have to take alternate routes causing gridlocks in Deira area as one side of the road has been closed for more than a year due to the construction work.

Confusing diversions

The stretch of Al Ittihad Road between the Dnata intersection and the Floating Bridge is also heavily congested due to confusing traffic diversions and construction work.

"The RTA should expedite the work on this interchange [linking Shaikh Rashid and the Airport Roads] because it causes huge traffic mess in the Deira area," said Zahoor Ahmad Shaikh, who commutes every day between Sharjah and Dubai.

"We drive smoothly on Al Ittihad Road while coming from Sharjah but get stuck in traffic after crossing Al Qiyada Interchange towards either going towards the Floating Bridge or Al Garhoud Bridge," he added. The eight lane road after Al Qiyada is reduced to two lanes near the Airport Road Interchange while going towards Al Garhoud causing traffic jams in the area. Also, motorists going towards Dnata Interchange and the Floating Bridge also face delays because of construction work and diversions.

The second phase of Al Ittihad Road Improvement Project was supposed to finish in January this year but the project was delayed and the new opening date was set in July. However, the RTA later announced that the construction work on the second phase of the project was to be fully completed and opened to traffic in October. But the work is still going on.

The RTA did not respond to requests for officials to explain the project's delay.

However, a senior official said that work is expected to be completed by the end of the year or in the beginning of the next year:

"We have recently opened two bridges on the under-construction interchange and would soon open the tunnels," the official said.

Once fully completed, the official said the Al Ittihad Road Improvement Project will greatly cut tailbacks on this vital road; particularly during the morning and evening peak hours.