Four UAE emirates – Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and Ajman – could be linked by a metro system under two different sets of proposals revealed this week.
A rail system could be built in Ajman, linking the emirate to the Dubai metro via Sharjah. The proposed line runs through Dubai’s Emirates Road to Al Corniche, Al Zawra and the investment areas of Ajman.
Sheikh Rashid bin Humaid al Nuaimi, Chairman of Ajman Municipality and Planning Department, has said that such a system is urgently needed to calm traffic problems between the emirates and boost the economy.
“For Ajman’s metro project, we are discussing [the matter] with the Government of Sharjah to get its approval to let the metro pass through Sharjah. Until now, we have not received any response in this regard,” said al Nuaimi, quoted by Emirates Today. He added that the metro systems could be part of the proposed GCC-wide rail network.
In Abu Dhabi, a study is underway by the United Group Holdings (UGH) to build a metro system in the emirate. Saeed Al Meqbali, general manager of UGH, was quoted in today’s Emarat Al Youm newspaper as saying that the study will be submitted to government organisations in the first quarter of this year.
An Abu Dhabi rail system could link with the Dubai Metro, which is already under construction. Tender documents are being prepared by Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) to extend the metro to the Abu Dhabi Border.
If the two proposed projects went ahead, it could be possible to travel from the UAE capital to Ajman by rail.
As ArabianBusiness.com reported recently, HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Ruler of Dubai and Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, has expressed hope that a metro system “will cover the whole Emirates”.
Construction of the Dubai Metro is well underway. Digging the first underground section of the system – which will start at Union Square in Deira and stretch to BurJuman Centre – began earlier this month.
The Dubai Metro red and green lines will run to a total of 70km.
The Green Line will initially run from Al Ittihad Square to Rashidiya bus station through Deira City Centre and the Airport Terminals 1 and 3. It will be extended to serve the Deira and Bur Dubai central areas and Souks up to Burjuman and Wafi shopping centres. A possible extension of the line from Wafi to the new Festival City development is under study.
The Red Line will eventually run from to Jebel Ali Port in the south and the intersection of Al Nahda and Damascus roads through Al Qiyadah intersection in the north. It will run through Burjuman and Sheikh Zayed Rd.
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