The line, built under the name Metro Route 2020, is scheduled to open to the public from September, following operational trials and tests by Dubai’s Road and Transport Authority (RTA). Work began on the project in September 2016.
The line includes 11.8km of elevated and 3.2km of underground track, and seven stations, including a new interchange at Jebel Ali and a terminal at the site of Expo 2020 (now postponed to October 2021).
The line is intended to provide a vital transport link for the communities of The Gardens, Discovery Gardens, Al Furjan, Jumeirah Golf Estates and Dubai Investment Park, which have a combined population of around 270,000.
The extension will also provide a direct metro link for visitors to the city from Terminals 1 and 3 of Dubai International Airport and the Expo 2020 site, with plans to extend the route 3.4km from Expo 2020 station to Al Maktoum International Airport in the future.
The line has been built with a capacity of 46,000 passengers per hour and is estimated to serve around 125,000 passengers per day from next year. Ridership is expected to more than double to 275,000 per day by 2030.
The project is part of the RTA’s plan to provide an integrated multi-modal transit system for the city, including metro and tram lines, buses and marine transport, and aims to support the UAE’s ‘Towards the Next 50 Years’ framework strategy, which aims to promote sustainable economic development in the emirate.
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