| November 26, 2007 | |
Dubai’s transport authority will spend $22 billion by 2020 to cope with an expanding population obsessed with cars.
In its 2020 Master Plan, the Roads and Traffic Authority is set to build 500 kilometres of new roads to cope with a population predicted to expand to more than five million, from the existing 1.4 million over the next 12 years, said Nasser Abu Shehab, Director of Strategic Planning.
Abu Shehab was speaking to delegates on Sunday at the first UITP MENA Public Transport Congress and Showcase at the Crowne Plaza in Dubai.
To fight the onslaught of more cars, more people and more congestion, Abu Shehab said the RTA is “discouraging the use of cars and encouraging the use of public transport.”
In a city that prides itself on status and money, “cars are regarded as a social symbol,” he said.
The push toward public transport includes the Dh25.5-billion Dubai Metro, which will ultimately provide cross-city travel for 650 million passengers a year.
“We expect 1.5 million person trips in daily morning traffic by 2020,” Abu Shehab said.
Currently, only seven per cent of daily trips in Dubai are made using public transport such as buses or water taxis, he said.
With the added pressure of 2,000 square-kilometres of new residential and commercial development in Dubai over the next decade, forward planning is critical if Dubai’s roads are to remain navigable, he said.
In addition to 500 kilometres of new roads, the RTA will add 96 new intersections and nine new ring roads at a cost of $12 billion, he said.
The cost of the new Metro, new trams, new marine transport as well as brand new buses will top $9.6 billion.
As many as 1,300 new buses are being added into the fleet to shore up public transport and the first of 800 new air conditioned bus shelters are being erected in the city, he said.
Abdul Majid Al Khaja, CEO of the RTA Rail Agency division, told conference delegates that Dubai is becoming famous for building major projects quickly and that his agency will continue to see things are done correctly and on time.
The Dubai Metro’s deadline to build the first Red Line of September 9, 2009, is on track under a 49-month construction deadline. The accompanying Green Line will also be done on time under a 43-month deadline, Al Khaja pledged.
Work is being done efficiently because “we short-circuit the process in Dubai”, eliminating bureaucratic red tape. Direct from the top administrators to middle managers and on to contractors, the work is being done as efficiently as possible, he said.
“We have a clear vision and we know where we are headed,” Al Khaja said.
The process to build is greatly helped, he said, through what is called “vision deployment.”
RTA Future Costs
The RTA is spending $22 billion over the next decade to prepare for the future and to ensure that the public can perform 1.5 million daily morning trips by 2020. The cost breakdown is as follows:
* Dubai Metro: $6.3 billion
* New tram system: $2,5 billion
* New public buses: $600 million
* Marine transport: $2.5 billion
* More than 500 kilometres of new roads: $12 billion
Source: Xpress4me.com
News Published Under: Dubai |