Dubai authorities sign off on Dh6bn traffic improvement plan

Access to locations including Palm Jumeirah, Business Bay and JVC will be upgraded

Heavy traffic in Dubai. Photo: Paola Rodini

Major upgrades to the road network costing Dh6 billion could soon make travelling in Dubai faster and easier.

An agreement between the emirate's Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) and Dubai Holding means that popular locations will receive improvements to make traffic flow more seamlessly. Bridges - both pedestrian and vehicle - will be developed and new roads built as part of the deal to improve access to five Dubai Holding developments: Jumeirah Village Circle, Dubai Production City, Business Bay, Palm Jumeirah, and International City.

Communities and projects also having infrastructure work carried out are:

• Dubai Islands
• Jumeirah Village Triangle
• Palm Gateway
• Al Furjan
• Jumeirah Park
• Arjan, Majan
• Liwan (Phase 1)
• Nad Al Hamar
• Villanova
• Serena

Images of the plans released by Dubai's Media Office show improvements such as additional pedestrian bridges on the trunk of Palm Jumeirah, additional roads in Business Bay near Bay Square plus pedestrian bridges, new roads, bridges, second level bridges and underpasses in JVC, and additional roads in International City 2.

The investment is one of many in Dubai which is part of a larger overall plan to improve infrastructure in an emirate with a booming population.

Proposed areas of development under the new Dh6bn agreement. Photo: Dubai Media Office

General improvements

Dubai's Railbus project was announced last month at the World Governments Summit. It was revealed that technical studies on the project would take two years and the new network would complement the existing metro and tram networks.

In October, authorities said that Dubai's Trade Centre Roundabout, connecting Sheikh Zayed Road with five main roads, will undergo an upgrade as part of a Dh696 million project which will include five bridges spanning 5,000 metres in total and turn it into a bridged intersection. In November, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, approved a five-year plan to transform the road network across the emirate.

The plan includes 21 projects spread across 12 residential, commercial and industrial areas, with 634km of new roads costing Dh3.7 billion. In December, Dubai released a map of its proposed new road network that will improve traffic flow to 19 residential areas, including Al Barsha and Jumeirah. The project, which will cover a total length of 11.5km, will cut travel time by up to 40 per cent, the RTA said.

The project is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2026. The Dubai Urban Master Plan 2040 estimates the city's population will have risen to 5.8 million by 2040. Currently, the Dubai Statistics Centre estimates the population to be 3.8 million.