RTA updates on progress of Dubai Metro Route 2020
Tunnel drilling work is 50% completed, Dubai Road and Transit Authority says
Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has announced that half of the tunnel drilling work on Dubai Metro’s Route 2020 has been completed, while the completion rate of the construction of stations range from 4% to 42%.
According to a report by WAM, Mattar Al Tayer, director general and chairman of the board of executive directors of the RTA, conducted an inspection tour of the stations of the Route 2020 project, which spans 15km form Nakheel Harbour and Tower Station, up to the site of the Expo. He was also briefed on the progress of the main tunnelling works, which extend to 3.2km at varying depths, ranging from 12m to 36m, and started in October 2017.
The giant Tunnel Boring Machine, known as Al Wugeisha Expo 2020, commenced tunnel drilling work at Al Furjan. It passed across Discovery Gardens and reached the underground station near Jumeirah Golf Estates in February. It will continue tunnelling work up to Dubai Investment Park, the report said.
All tunnel-related work is scheduled to be completed by December this year.
Al Tayer was also updated about the work progress of the metro stations. Currently, the architectural, constructional and electromechanical designs are being developed for the Expo station, the elevated and underground stations, along with Nakheel Harbour and Tower Station. The completion rate of the underground station at Jumeirah Golf Estates has reached 42%, while the DIP station has only reached 8% completion.
The elevated station at Al Furjan has reached 14% completion, while Discovery Gardens is at 12%. Expo station is at 7%, while Nakheel Harbour and Tower Station is at 3%. However, the completion rate for the deep foundations at the latter station have reached 50%. The footbridge linking the station and the Park-N-Ride terminal has been removed to start construction work on the new station, the WAM report added.
Furthermore, the project contractor has completed construction work on the deep foundations and pillars at the Gardens area, it said. Work is currently underway on the manufacturing of the metal structures of the elevated station at Discovery Gardens, where completion has reached 35%.
Work has started on casting reinforced concrete for the foundations of the main building of the Expo Station, where the completion rate of casting concrete pillars has exceeded 70%. The completion rate of the construction of pillars and walls of the Western gate of the Expo Station has gone beyond 90%, while the Eastern Gate has reached 40%.
As for the installation of the viaduct segments, 60 have been installed across various parts of the project, the report added.
Al Tayer said that he was delighted with the work progress of the Route 2020 project, praising it for moving according to the approved time chart. He added that the first of the new metro carriages would be expected to arrive in July this year.
Construction works on the viaducts are expected to finished by November 2018, while all the rail works for the route are scheduled to be completed by July 2019, with test runs of the metro starting in February 2020.
