Contract awarded for two Dubai roads

Two more contracts to build parts of roads that will run parallel to Sheikh Zayed Road from Dubai to Abu Dhabi have been awarded by the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA).

The sections – together costing Dh1.4 billion – are scheduled to be completed within two years. They will form part of a massive project involving the construction of two roads – three lanes in each direction – that will run for 108km from Sheikh Rashid Road to the outskirts of the capital.

There will be bridges and interchanges with a total of 42km of roads leading off the new carriageways. The project is intended to reduce traffic on the highway. Because of the massive scale of the project, it has been divided into nine phases and four contracts have been awarded so far, said Mattar Al Tayer, Chairman and Executive Director of the RTA.

The successful bidders for the latest two were Todini and Al Nabooda Contracting. Work on two other phases is already under way by China State and Salini.

“This project consists of two supporting roads to Sheikh Zayed Road, which  experiences heavy traffic as a result of development projects,” said Al Tayer (pictured above). “It is among the vital schemes undertaken by the RTA to ease the congestion problem on Sheikh Zayed Road. The capacity of these two roads is expected to be in the order of 18,000 vehicles per hour.”

Todini has won a Dh449 million contract to complete the key works of one part – known as Phase III (A) – within 600 days. This 10km section of the road corridor will link Jumeirah Lake Towers with large-scale Emaar and Nakheel projects in the area south of Sheikh Zayed Road beyond interchange five. It will include five bridges and two tunnels. The contract also covers the provision of utilities, pavements, signage, road markings, street lighting, diversions and the protection of the existing services. “This section represents six per cent of the total scheme,” said Al Tayer.

Phase III (B) will be built by Al Nabooda Contracting at a cost of Dh950 million in an estimated 730 days. This 20km section will pass through Jebel Ali Racecourse, Emirates Hills, the Springs, Jumeirah Island, Jumeirah Park and Metro Plots. It will include 10 bridges and four underpasses and will comprise 14 per cent of the total project.

The contract for Phase I, covering the construction of the Eastern and Western Parallel Roads at Al Barsha and Al Quoz areas, was awarded to China State and work began last February.

This Dh600m, 13km phase extends from Jebel Ali Racecourse to Muscat Road and includes two flyovers.

The Dh693m contract for Phase II went to Salini and work began last November.

The remaining phases of the project are at the initial design and tendering stage.