DUBAI: Infrastructure and road projects that will serve Expo 2020, which begins October 1, have been accomplished at the cost of more than AED15 billion, said Mattar Mohammed Al Tayer, Director-General of the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA).
Al Tayer said this while confirming the preparedness of the infrastructure of roads and mass transit networks for the mega event.
Construction of an Enterprise Command and Control Centre, one of the biggest and most sophisticated control centers in the world, has been one of the 15 projects accomplished by the RTA, it said.
RTA said it also constructed the Intelligent Traffic Centre that uses cutting-edge smart technologies in managing traffic movement.
The RTA said the portfolio of projects completed is highlighted by Route 2020 of Dubai Metro running 15 km and connecting seven stations, procuring 50 trains with stylish interiors, constructing roads spanning 138 lane km with nine flyovers, deploying 200 public buses, designating 18 stations/stops for buses at hotspots in Dubai and other key cities of the UAE, deploying 15000 taxis, limousines, managing 30,000 parking slots at Expo site, and using smart technologies, apps, and artificial intelligence to ease the movement of Expo visitors aboard the metro, buses and taxis.
Dubai Metro Expo 2020 Station will operate on October 1, synchronized with the official opening of Expo 2020. The Red and Green Lines of Dubai Metro will offer passenger services from Saturday to Wednesday from 05:00 am to 01:15 am (of the following day).
On Thursday, the service will run from 05:00 am to 02:15 am (of the following day), and on Friday from 08:00 am to 01:15 am (of the following day). The service frequency will be 2:38 minutes during peak times. Dubai Tram will provide service from Saturday to Thursday from 06:00 am to 01:00 am (of the following day), and on Friday from 08:00 am to 01:00 am (of the following day).
Expo Buses will operate from 06:30 am and continue service for 90 minutes after the closure of Expo Gates. Passenger commuting service from the parking area (Expo Parking Shuttle) to the three Expo Gates will start at 09:00 am and continue for 90 minutes after the closure of Expo Gates. Bus Service between Expo Gates (Expo People Mover) will start service at 06:30 am and continue service 90 minutes after the closure of Expo Gates. Taxi and e-hail services will be running around the clock.
RTA has charted out technical event management plans and developed a structure for the mobility of Expo visitors using various transit means from the metro and bus stations inside and outside the emirate in addition to taxis deployed at the site. RTA also charted out a plan for managing the traffic movement on the surrounding roads and junctions during weekdays and weekends as well as days witnessing mega events throughout the period of Expo.
It also charted out alternative plans for coping with all possible scenarios with the potential of causing snarls to ensure a permanent smooth traffic flow during the Expo period. RTA has communication and response plans during emergencies and crises including solutions for potential scenarios as well as plans for instant traffic conversions in the event of closures of all roads and junctions in the surrounds of the site.
To ensure the smooth flow of traffic that serves Expo 2020 as well as future projects in the area, RTA has accomplished the improvement of the surrounding roads network in the area that included the construction of six flyovers to ensure free traffic movement in all directions. It also constructed 64 bridges stretching 13 km, 5 box tunnels extending 450 meters, and roads extending 138 lane-kilometers in addition to 25 entry lanes and 21 exit lanes for vehicles at the Expo site.
RTA will manage about 30,000 parking slots at the site of Expo distributed at several zones (Opportunity, Mobility, Sustainability, World, and Nissan Parking).
RTA will cater to the management of these parking spaces using state-of-the-art technology devices to ensure a safe and smooth movement of vehicles from and to the parking lots. It will use intelligent traffic signs and manage the parking by a smart system connected to the traffic monitoring center to identify vacant slots. RTA has developed alternative plans to cope with the events in case the parking lots are full by using the intelligent traffic signs on external and internal roads to direct motorists to alternative parking.
RTA said that due to the immense nature of the road projects, which were completed in 2020, they have been divided into six phases: Constructing the junction of Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Road and Expo Road. It required transforming the previous roundabout at the intersection of Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Road and Expo Road into a flyover that provides free traffic movement in all directions. It involved increasing the number of lanes of Expo Road from four to six lanes in each direction, constructing service roads in both directions, and providing free turns through the bridges. The project increased the road capacity from 16,500 vehicles per hour to 69,000 vehicles per hour.
RTA had undertaken the construction of Route 2020 of the Dubai Metro. It extends 15 km from Jebel Ali Metro Station on the Red Line to Expo 2020 Station. It connects seven stations and provides safe and smooth transport for visitors of the Expo as well as Dubai districts.
Route 2020 serves communities populated by more than 270,000 people namely the Gardens, Discovery Gardens, Al Furjan, Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai Investment Park and Dubai Expo 2020 site.
It has a capacity of 46,000 riders per hour in both directions (23,000 riders per hour per direction). The number of riders is expected to reach 275,000 riders per day in 2030. Expo Station is expected to receive 35,000 daily visitors of Expo during weekdays, and the number is set to increase to 47,000 daily visitors during weekends. This number accounts for 29 percent of the total expected number of daily visitors to Expo.