Dubai Metro Blue Line: How city's mega-project is being delivered

Challenges of constructing a railway through urban areas explained

Pierre Santoni, Parsons Corporation president for infrastructure in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Antonie Robertson / The National

The Dubai Metro Blue Line is as “complex” a project as they come because it will deliver rail into existing communities.

A senior representative of Parsons Corporation – picked by Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority as project management consultants for the build – has told The National about the huge challenges and major benefits of the mega-project that is set to carry 320,000 passengers a day by 2040.

“We're delivering a project in the middle of a live city – into very busy and very dense environments … such as International City and Mirdif,” said Pierre Santoni, president for infrastructure in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

The RTA awarded the $5.6 billion contract last year and construction has started. It will have 14 stations along 30km of track connecting to the existing metro, a bridge spanning Dubai Creek, a landmark station at Dubai Creek Harbour and a huge underground interconnector station at International City, all of which bring a “huge number of challenges”.

The project will involve diverting traffic, tunnelling, pumping water out of the ground so workers can operate in a dry environment and, crucially, rerouting utilities as they pass gas and transmission lines.

“Everybody wants to go home and be able to turn on the electricity,” he said. “Probably traffic management around the construction zones and making sure the utilities continue running … are the two most visible parts of the challenges.”

Parsons Corporation, along with its partner AtkinsRealis, has a five-year contract for the project.

A closer look at the Dubai Metro Blue Line

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A growing metropolis

Aerial maps of Dubai clearly show why the new line is needed. The city has expanded south in a bulge of industrial, commercial and residential developments that will now be served by the new rail system.

The catchment area for the new metro line is expected to be about 1 million people and Mr Santoni said it was going to be “totally transformational”.

“It is connecting parts of Dubai that are in dire need of public transport connectivity,” he said.

"If you’re in International City today and are looking to get to the airport, while it is now partially possible through public transport with the Blue Line travellers will be able to get to the airport within 15 mins making journeys much more efficient and convenient."

The line is set open on September 9, 2029 – twenty years after the very first Metro opened – and is set to add about 30 per cent capacity to the current system with the RTA previously stating it would reduce traffic along the alignment by 20 per cent.

The metro will also serve Dubai Silicon Oasis, a strategic centre under the Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan, and Dubai Academic City, anticipated to host more than 50,000 university students by 2029.

Mr Santoni said the stations are “marginally larger than previous ones” but the size of the trains and length of platforms are largely the same so capacity cannot be increased by adding more trains.

Therefore much work has focused on getting trains faster through stations and getting people in and out of the stations quickly using technology and ease of access.

Integration is key

The soaring station at Dubai Creek Harbour has caught the eye but the project also includes an underground interchange station at International City. Mr Santoni said two tunnels would be dug underneath International City and this will happen largely without disruption to the community. Stations serving International City will also improve access to the Dragon Mart shopping complex located in the area.

Integrating the metro with other modes of transport from ferries to taxis is crucial. He said lessons were learnt from the existing Metro.

“We have personal electric vehicles, mopeds … [and] electric vehicles, charging stations and things like this need to be accommodated in some of the parking areas.

“Whatever mode of transport people use … they should be able to leave it there in a safe way, protected. At the end of the day, nobody wants to spend time getting to the station.”

New communities being developed around the metro station are another by-product of such projects, added Mr Santoni. He pointed to the extension of the Metro to the Expo 2020 site as a good example of this.

“That's why when you arrive, it's a seamless experience in and out and we're trying to do that for the Blue Line a lot more," he said.

The Blue Line also supports urban planning schemes to ensure that more than 80 per cent of services are accessible in a 20-minute commute without having to use a car.

It is estimated that for every dirham spent, at least Dh2.6 would be made back. This considers time savings, reduced carbon emissions and traffic benefits, but crucially does not take into account future benefits such as property price rises.

Mr Santoni also paid tribute to the RTA and the government of Dubai and said Parsons was grateful to be entrusted with the responsibility of the project.

Parsons, meanwhile, has been involved in some of Dubai’s most high-profile projects, from the Dubai Canal to the Infinity Bridge that spans the Creek. And Mr Santoni, a civil engineer by trade who arrived in 2005, has had a front-row seat to the huge changes in the city.

“My first project was Discovery Gardens,” he said. “My second was Jumeirah Lakes Towers. It is amazing to see the growth of the city and … to see that it is doing so well.”