ABU DHABI // Almost six years after work began, Khalifa Street is once again connected to Airport Road, with six lanes of traffic now making its way through a ground-level tunnel beneath Central Market.
Access in the congested city-centre area has eased since the opening of a portion of Khalifa (Street 3) last week, leaving local residents and businesses hopeful of easier passage and increased trade.
Tourists wanting to visit The Souq: Central Market should also find access easier as, in addition to the three lanes in either direction, a drop-off layby with a taxi rank at the entrance has been installed.
But other building work is continuing at Central Market, so while progress has been made, work is still ongoing in nearby areas.
Talal Al Dhiyebi, executive director of asset management at Aldar, the developer of the market, said yesterday: "The road closed to motorists in 2006 and opened on July 5."
The opening of other parts of the market will be announced later.
Aali Qaedi Kunji, who has lived in the area for 37 years, said: "The street has been closed for almost seven years. But I feel some respite since the opening as traffic movement in the area has got better."
Mr Kunji, who runs Cairo Castle Textiles, a shop opposite The Souq, said it used to be hard to find a parking space but the better access makes it easier.
"People would come and be stuck in traffic but now they are free to move around," he said. "All these years we have been continuously losing business but after this road opening, we hope for better."
Khaled Al Qubaisi, an Emirati who also lives in the area, said: "It looks good and has good accessibility to other roads. I am happy to see the traffic jams ease in the vicinity."
Ismael Abdul Qader, a shopper at The Souq, said: "It connects you directly to the Corniche, which is a few blocks away, as well as Airport Road. Before, coming to this area was a nightmare."
Muzammil Ashraf Zarghar, a shopkeeper at Kashmir House in The Souq, said: "I think after a few weeks, when people get to know about this new road, sales could jump up."
The Souq: Central Market, opened in 2010 and is a modern development that purports to be a historic souq.
A souq has been present in the vicinity since the 1970s but previous ones would have been nothing like the grand indoor space that is there now, with its Andalusian-style fountain and rooftop restaurant.
anwar@thenational.ae
Who has lived at The Bishops Avenue?
- George Sainsbury of the supermarket dynasty, sugar magnate William Park Lyle and actress Dame Gracie Fields were residents in the 1930s when the street was only known as ‘Millionaires’ Row’.
- Then came the international super rich, including the last king of Greece, Constantine II, the Sultan of Brunei and Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal who was at one point ranked the third richest person in the world.
- Turkish tycoon Halis Torprak sold his mansion for £50m in 2008 after spending just two days there. The House of Saud sold 10 properties on the road in 2013 for almost £80m.
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Countdown to Zero exhibition will show how disease can be beaten
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Opening on October 15 and running until November 15, the free exhibition opens at The Galleria mall on Al Maryah Island, and has already been seen at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum in Atlanta, the American Museum of Natural History in New York, and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
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Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.
The municipality plans to have seven mobile air-monitoring stations by 2020 to capture more accurate data in hourly and daily trends of pollution.
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“We’re in a good position except for the cases that are out of our hands, such as sandstorms.
“Sandstorms are our main concern because the UAE is just a receiver.
“The hotspots are Iran, Saudi Arabia and southern Iraq, but we’re working hard with the region to reduce the cycle of sandstorm generation.”
Mr Al Daraji said monitoring as it stood covered 47 per cent of Dubai.
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“There are 25 stations in total,” Mr Al Daraji said.
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