Work is moving at a steady pace on the Route 2020 Project, which covers the extension of the Metro Red Line 15 km from Nakheel Harbour & Tower Station to the mega expo site, with about seven per cent of the project already completed, said a senior official.

"The construction of Route 2020 Project is part of Dubai Plan 2021 for achieving sustainable development and offering world-class services," remarked Mattar Al Tayer, the director-general and chairman of the board of executive directors of the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA).

"It is also an implementation of RTA Strategic Plan 2021 for providing mass transit systems comprising the metro, tram, buses and marine transit modes. The ultimate aim of these plans is to realise RTA’s vision of Safe & Smooth Transport for All," he stated.

Al Tayer was inspecting the Concrete Batching Yard where concrete segments of the metro viaduct are produced together with supporting pillars of a diameter ranging from 2.2 m to 2.6 m.

His visit also included construction sites of several metro stations, said the statement from RTA.

Al Tayer attended to a briefing from Abdul Rida Abu Al Hassan, the executive director of Rail Projects Planning & Development at RTA’s Rail Agency and several engineers on the work progress in the project.

More than 200 piles have been inserted at depths ranging from 25 m to 30 m at Expo and Al Furjan sites. More than 20 pillars of about 7 meters in height have been casted, it stated.
 
Al Tayer toured the site of Expo Station, one of the key stations and a communication point with the site of Expo 2020 characterized by a unique aeroplane wing-shaped structures, which has been the main design inspiration of the station.

He also toured the site of Jumeirah Golf Estates Station, one of the underground stations. The final station in the visit was Nakheel Harbour & Tower Station, the interchange station between the Red Line and Route 2020, said the RTA statement.

Expressing delight at the steady pace of work, Al Tayer said: "Casting the pillars of the metro viaduct is a landmark achievement in the progress of the project development. This step marks the emergence of the project components, rendering it visible to road users and residents of the neighbourhood."

Route 2020 extends about 15 km from Nakheel Harbour and Tower Station on the Red Line, comprising 11.8 km as an elevated track and 3.2 km as an underground track. It has seven stations, including an interchange station, one station at Expo site, three elevated stations and two underground stations, said the RTA in its statement.

The capacity of Route 2020 is 46,000 riders per hour in both directions - 23,000 riders per hour per direction. The ridership of the Route is expected to hit 125,000 riders per day by 2020, and the number is expected to shoot up to 275,000 riders per day by 2030, it added.-TradeArabia News Service