A US $217mn contract has been awarded by Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA). The contract is for Phase 4 of the Al Shindagha Corridor Improvement Project, which extends 4.8km along Sheikh Rashid Road from the intersection with Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Street to the Falcon Interchange on Al Mina Road.
According to a statement from the RTA, the project aims to keep pace with the continuous development of the locality, while catering to the demands of urban expansion and population growth.
The scope of work includes the construction of three bridges spanning 3.1km in total, capable of accommodating 19,400 vehicles per hour across all lanes.
“The Al Shindagha Corridor Improvement project is one of the largest projects currently being undertaken by us with a total estimated cost of $1.443bn. The project encompasses the construction of 15 intersections spanning 13km in total,” said Mattar Al Tayer, the Director General and Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of RTA.
In early December 2022, the RTA awarded contracts for three all-inclusive truck rest stops in Dubai.
The first is a three-lane bridge stretching 1,335m to ensure smooth traffic flow between Sheikh Rashid Road and the Falcon Intersection, with a capacity of 10,800 vehicles per hour in both directions, the statement explained.
The second bridge will also have three-lanes extending 780m to serve the traffic inbound from Falcon Interchange heading to Al Wasl Road with a capacity of 5,400 vehicles per hour. The third is a two-lane bridge extending 985m to serve traffic inbound from Jumeirah Street heading to Al Mina Road in the direction of Falcon Interchange with a capacity of 3,200 vehicles per hour.
It also covers the construction of two footbridges: the first on Sheikh Rashid Road, and the second on Al Mina Road in addition to street-lighting works, traffic systems, rainwater drainage networks, and irrigation networks, the RTA added.
Al Tayer remarked, “Due to its massive scope, the project had to be split into five phases. The corridor serves Deira and Bur Dubai in addition to several development projects such as Deira Islands, Dubai Seafront, Dubai Maritime City and Port Rashid. As such, it is expected to serve about one million people. It will slash the travel time from 104 minutes to just 16 minutes by 2030, and the time saved over 20 years will be worth about $12.25bn.”
Al Tayer also noted that the RTA had made significant progress in the construction works of the Falcon Interchange Improvement project, which includes the construction of two bridges along Al Khaleej Street.
In late December 2022, Phase I of the Sheikh Rashid Corridor Project was opened.
The first bridge extends 750m north, and the second one stretches 1,075m south. These bridges have six lanes in each direction with a capacity of 24,000 vehicles per hour in both directions. Works also include the construction of a single-lane bridge extending 250m for the right-turn from Khalid bin Al Waleed Street to Al Khaleej Street with a capacity of 1,600 vehicles per hour, the RTA pointed out.
Works underway include a two-lane 500m tunnel for left turns from Khaled bin Al Waleed Street to Al Mina Road capable of handling 3,200 vehicles per hour in addition to a surface signalised intersection linking Al Khaleej with Al Ghubaiba and Khaled bin Al Waleed Streets, the statement concluded.
In late January 2023, the RTA opened the Sheikh Zayed bin Hamdan Al Nahyan street improvement project.