Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid inspected the new bicycle path at Dubai's Jumeirah Beach on Wednesday.
The Vice President and Ruler of Dubai took to two wheels to test the path, which is a new stretch of cycle track that runs 16 kilometres along Jumeirah Beach.
Once fully complete, it will connect the existing Jumeirah Street cycle track – parallel to the canal – with the cycle track alongside Dubai Internet City.
"As part of my field follow-up today, I inspected the new bike track on Jumeirah Beach," Sheikh Mohammed said in a tweet.
"It is a beautiful path we [added] to the 520km bike tracks in Dubai, which pass along the most beautiful landmarks of the city.
"I will stay in the field [follow up the line of work] until Dubai becomes the best city to live in in the world, God willing."
Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai, in June had announced plans to build the track.
The new path is part of a Dh400 million ($108m) strategy to make cycling in the emirate safer.
The first section of the track is four metres wide and runs alongside the existing jogging and walking tracks that extend from Dubai Water Canal to Umm Suqeim Park.
The second is three metres wide and runs alongside Jumeirah Street and King Salman bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud Street, up to Dubai Internet City.
It will cater to several visitor hot spots, including Sunset Mall, Open Beach, Dubai Sailing Club, Kite Beach, Umm Suqeim Park and Burj Al Arab.
The Dubai Bicycle-Friendly City Strategy 2025 features 18 initiatives to improve the quality of life for residents.
The main focus is to transform public spaces to make them more user-friendly, so residents can lead more active lifestyles.
Better access to cycle tracks
The track at Jumeirah Beach provides residents in several of Dubai’s most urbanised districts the opportunity to take advantage of the emirate’s cycling facilities, said the founder of Dubai Cycling Community.
Andy Fordham said the track gives people based in nearby Business Bay and Downtown Dubai can now use cycling facilities that they previously had to travel to other parts of the city to access.
“This provides connectivity for cyclists in areas like Business Bay and Downtown,” said Mr Fordham.
“It’s also a different kind of track to the ones you find in Al Qudra and District One.
“This is a more recreational type of track and will attract a totally different kind of market than the others.”
He said the track was the latest step in ensuring all residents of the emirate had easy access to cycling tracks close to their communities.
“You just have to look at the other cycling tracks in Dubai to see there’s serious intention to have most of the city connected in the next ten years,” he said.
The first phase of a 50 km mountain bike track was completed Mushrif Park in Dubai in October.
The emirate is on course to have almost 740km of cycle tracks by the year 2026, as part of its strategy to become a cycle-friendly city.
