Dubai Metro - Highlights of the Project

Dubai Metro work is on in full swing and I am excited. The metro will change the face of Dubai.

It’s nice to see the progress everyday as I walk to my office. Work has started at various locations. Excavation work is going round the clock. Many are complaining that metro work disturbs their night sleep. Even I hear noises on the Deira Rigga road where I reside. This is after all a small trade off for what Dubai will offer by September 2009. One of the hallmarks of a developed city is a metro system. The most advanced cities of the world have their own railway network. The population of Dubai slated to hit the 3 million mark by 2017 (currently around 1.4 million, 2005 estimate). Going by the speed at which projects are executed I see the Red Line of the metro going operational by September 2009 as promised by the government.

Here are some specs of Dubai Metro:

• It’s a $4.25 billion project
• Capacity of each train will be 897 people.
• Total number of trains will be 87 (62 for the Red Line & 25 for the Green Line).
• Trains will be manufactured in Japan.
• Each train will have 5 compartments.
• Each compartment will include CCTV; special needs people requirement, signage system and metro route map.
• Each train will have 3 classes: Golden Class, Women & children Class & the Silver Class.
• Each compartment will be 18 meters in length.
• Price of each train will be AED 500 Million ($136 million each).
• Parking lots will be reserved for metro users.