Metro designed to be the world's best transport network

The launch of the Metro will signal the arrival of Dubai in the league of big cities and it is projected to become one of the best transport networks in the world.

"The RTA's vision, which is based on the infrastructure section of the Dubai Strategic Plan 2015, is now being realised. The Dubai Metro project has been completed in a record-breaking time of less than four years since Sheikh Mohammed laid the foundation stone of the project on March 21, 2006," said Mattar Al Tayer, Chairman and Executive Director of the Roads and Transport Authority.

"Throughout the construction work the RTA has remained committed to the best global safety standards and sought the services of international organisations to assess safety through all the phases of the project.

"The RTA was keen to use the latest technology available in the rail industry and provide all means of comfort and welfare to passengers. The RTA's foremost interest is in the safety of Dubai Metro users. As such all our focus and efforts were put into getting the 10 stations ready in terms of infrastructure and operations. Extensive trial runs were carried out to ensure this."

Al Tayer said work on the 10 stations opening on September 9 is fully complete.

"Work on the remaining stations is nearing completion; they are about 90 per cent complete," he added.

"Some of the stations are not being made operational as the property projects they are intended to serve have yet to be completed. This obviously means no passenger demand is foreseen for the time being at these stations. An example of this is Jebel Ali Station."

The construction of some stations had also not yet been completed due to the complexity of the Metro network.

"The remaining work will be over before February 2010. However, we will make these stations operational in groups of three or more so they can be integrated into the system in a smooth way."

The 10 Red Line stations that will open on September 9 are Rashidiya, Terminal 3 (Dubai International Airport), City Centre, Al Rigga, Union, Khalid bin Al Waleed, Jafiliya, Financial Centre, Mall of the Emirates, and Nakheel Harbour and Tower.

Al Tayer listed the factors that had led to the selection of the 10 stations that are to open first. "The factors were the population density in the area served by each station, the presence of commercial activities, the presence of government bodies, links with multi-storey car parks, links with other means of transport such as buses and water transport, the technical readiness of the station and the anticipated number of passengers who would use each station.

"The opening of Rashidiya Station is important because it is the starting point of the Red Line on the east side of the city, and because it houses a multi-storey car park for 2,750 vehicles and serves several highly populated areas such as Rashidiya, Mirdif, Al Mizhar, Al Warqa and Nad Al Hammar."

The Terminal 3 Station at Dubai International Airport will serve passengers arriving and departing, while City Centre, Al Rigga and Khalid bin Al Waleed stations will serve highly populated areas and commercial centers, with high traffic flows. Union Station will serve the central business district along with several key government organisations. The station is located close to a major bus station and many marine transport stations on Dubai Creek, making it a multi-modal station.

The Jafiliya Station will serve Dubai Naturalisation and Residency Department, Dubai Police Station and the new etisalat building.

"The opening of this station will reduce the pressure on roads and parking facilities for the large number of people who require these services regularly," said Al Tayer.

The Financial Centre Station will serve the business and financial district of Dubai and also provide connections to several five-star hotels on Sheikh Zayed Road.

The Mall of the Emirates Station will serve one of the largest malls in the Dubai as well as the Al Barsha area. The Nakheel Harbour and Tower Station includes the second multi-storey car park on the Red Line on the West side of the city, which can accommodate up to 3,000 vehicles.

Al Tayer said the fare structure of Dubai's mass transport system was designed to be . "The fares are among the cheapest in the world. For instance the fare of a trip from Rashidiya to Jebel Ali is only Dh5.80. More than 700 feeder buses have been deployed to serve these stations on well-planned and co-ordinated routes. "These buses will have route numbers beginning with the letter F, and will be visible to all passengers waiting to use them for connection to the nearest Metro station."


Cost increase

The cost of building the Dubai Metro has soared by Dh12.5 billion due to major design changes and the extension of the network.

The budget for the Red Line and Green Line was originally set at Dh15.5bn, but the figure had since risen to Dh28bn, said Al Tayer. The cost of buying land and building additional stations had contributed to the increase, he added.

Al Tayer said the finance for the project was guaranteed by Dubai Government and there would not be any problems with the funding.

"The project is totally financed by the government but you should not forget that RTA has income of its own," he said. "But the financing for the Metro is totally taken care of by the government and we are paying it back right on time. There are four main reasons why the budget for the construction of the Metro has increased. Firstly, the project was extended by several kilometres after the initial design was produced and the estimate made.

"On Al Nahda road, we extended the Metro line by 4.5km from the junction of Terminal Two to Emirates Road, which involved the construction of four stations and a large depot.

"All this, including the depot, was not factored into the initial estimate. At that time the planning was not ready for Al Ghusais. We had to add land for the depot and extension, which cost us a lot of money."

The second reason for the increase, he said, was a series of changes made in Jadaf. "We added a station and about three to four kilometres of line in Jadaf," he said.

"Thirdly we also added two stations on the Red Line, one at the Mall of the Emirates and the other at Salahuddin Road.

"Finally, the interior design had to be changed drastically. The design changes also included the external shape of the stations and the footbridges. It is because of these extensive changes the cost of the project went up so drastically," said Al Tayer.

Why the budget soared

- The project was extended by several kilometres after the initial design was produced and estimates made

- A series of changes made in Jadaf with an additional station and about three to four kilometres of line

- Two additional stations on the Red Line, one at the Mall of the Emirates and the other at Salahuddin Road

- About 40-50 per cent changes in the design both internally and externally

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