Dubai: A Dh2 billion project to upgrade Dubai-Al Ain Road and six interchanges on it has been approved, officials announced on Saturday.
His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, has approved the ‘Improvement of Dubai-Al Ain Road Project’, Dubai Media Office announced.
The improvements will result in doubling the number of lanes from three to six lanes in each direction over a 17km stretch. Works also include upgrading six interchanges as well as constructing new bridges and service roads on both sides.
The project will enhance the road’s link with several highways, such as Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Road, Shaikh Zayed Bin Hamdan Al Nahyan Road and Emirates Road. It will also serve the existing and future development projects on both sides of the road.
The project will boost traffic safety, enhance the road intake from 6,000 to 12,000 vehicles per hour, and cut transit time from Emirates Road interchange to Oud Metha Street from 16 to eight minutes.
“The Roads and Transport Authority [RTA] is undertaking this project in response to the directives of [Shaikh Mohammad] to meet the needs of urban development and demographic expansion and keep pace with the current upswing, as well as bring happiness to people.
"It will serve several development projects on both sides of the Dubai-Al Ain Road, such as Meydan, Dubai Silicon Oasis, Dubailand Residential Complex, Liwan and Dubai Design District,” said Mattar Al Tayer, Director-General and Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of RTA.
Phased construction
“In view of the immense nature of the project and the need to complete it within the timeline set, the project has been split into two phases. Phase one, which costs around Dh1.3 billion extends 7km from the interchange of Emirates Road to the interchange of the Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Road.
“Phase two, which costs about Dh748 million extends 10km from the interchange of the Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Road up to the interchange of Bu Kadra and Ras Al Khor Street. The development of the remaining sector of the Dubai-Al Ain Road from the interchange of Emirates Road up to the outskirts of Al Ain city will be undertaken in future.”
Phase one
Al Tayer said the initial phase of the project includes upgrading the junction with Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Road, which currently witnesses high traffic volumes. Works include constructing four ramps to serve traffic movement in four directions, which is planned to be completed in the first half of 2020.
The existing bridge on Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Road will be redeveloped to enable widening of the Dubai-Al Ain Road from three to six lanes in each direction, besides constructing service roads on both sides of the road.
Under this phase, RTA will improve the junction with Shaikh Zayed Bin Hamdan Al Nahyan Road to link it with the extension of Shaikh Zayed Bin Hamdan Road, which was opened in March 2018. It involves the construction of a flyover of four lanes in each direction crossing over Dubai-Al Ain Road, with a possibility of widening it to five lanes in future.
Works include improving the existing ramp to serve the inbound traffic from Dubailand Residential Complex heading westward to the Dubai-bound sector of Dubai-Al Ain Road. A new flyover will be constructed to serve the traffic coming from Dubai heading northward to the Academic City and the Dubai Silicon Oasis.
Phase one also covers upgrading the interchange of Emirates Road by constructing a flyover crossing Dubai-Al-Ain Road to serve westbound traffic from Dubailand Residential Complex to Dubai, added Al Tayer.
Phase two
He said the second phase involves, among other works, upgrading the Nad Al Sheba interchange by upgrading the existing bridge to serve the traffic from Dubai-Al Ain Road to Nad Al Sheba and vice versa, and improving inward and outward surface roads at Nad Al Sheba.
