Source: www.ameinfo.com
H.E. Mattar Al Tayer, Chairman of the Board and Executive Director of the Dubai Roads & Transport Authority (RTA), revealed that the completion rate in constructing several stations on the Green Line of Dubai Metro ranges from 50% to 80%, and emphasized that the project is running on schedule such that the opening and start of operation will be in the second half of 2010.
Al Tayer made this announcement during a tour he recently made to inspect the work progress in the Green Line Stations of Dubai Metro project, which took him to Al Qusais Depot, the Command & Control Center, the multi-level Park-and-Ride facilities, Al Nahdah Station, Bani Yas Station, and Al Ras Station. During the tour Al Tayer was accompanied by the CEO of Rail Agency Abdul Majeed Al Khaja and several directors and engineers supervising the project.
Al Tayer set off his tour by inspecting the metro Depot at Al Qusais, where construction works have exceeded 70%. The Depot; a garage for maintaining & cleaning of metro carriages, is fitted with air-conditioners and advanced firefighting systems. It comprises a parking area for train carriages and has a capacity to house 60 trains at a time. It includes Rail Operations Systems Control Center; which ensures the safety of doors, brakes and engines in each train separately, as well as the air-conditioning systems and other sophisticated sub systems.
It also contains workshops for carrying out maintenance works, and dedicated workshops for washing and cleaning of train carriages.
Al Tayer then inspected the work progress in Trains Systems Control Center; which is fitted with the state-of-the-art technologies enabling full control of the daily metro operation on both the Red and Green Lines. The Center also provides control, supervision and monitoring of rail traffic & systems through supervising the functionality of the auto train movement, communication systems, electrical transformers, and power feed system for both the trains and metro stations. It also enables supervision of safety systems such as fire-fighting systems, ventilation systems in tunnels, stations & trains in addition to rail air-conditioning systems, and safety of doors, brakes and engines of each train. The Center also acts as a point of communication with rail commuters in the event of emergency through the communication systems on board the carriages and the Control Room.
Al Tayer reviewed the work progress in the multi-level Park-and-Ride facility which has a capacity to house 2350 vehicles in order to encourage the public use the metro in their mobility within the emirate of Dubai. The building has been designed to provide ample space for feeder buses, ensure smooth traffic flow and accommodate huge numbers of cars at the same time. It is also fitted with footbridges linking up with the other opposite side of the road in order to provide easy and safe access to the metro station, while providing all the standard safety measures for passenger movement in the building.
Al Tayer completed his site tour by inspecting the work progress at Al Nahdah Station; an elevated station that has a capacity of about 11,00 passengers per hour in each direction. The station extends about 130 meters in length and 30 meters in width and has two entry points fitted with escalators and lifts. Al Tayer toured the station in which the completion rate reached about 50%, where he directed to expedite the completion of electromechanical works and installation of escalators in the station.
H.E. Mattar Al Tayer moved on to inspect the work progress at Bani Yas Station; which is one of six underground stations on the Green Line. The station measures about 144 meters in length and has a width ranging from 22 meters to 53 meters with a capacity to handle about 8,000 passengers per hour. He toured the station which contains wide areas to be invested in various commercial activities such as restaurants, cafes, convenient stores, property showrooms, bank services and ATMs. Construction works in the station have reached an advanced stage exceeding 80% while the completion of internal decorations has hit 80% as well.
Al Tayer then inspected the work progress at Al Ras Station; where construction works exceeded 50%. The station is one of two stations that feature heritage design illustrating the history and legacy of the UAE. The theme of the design revolves around employing the architectural traditional elements used in antique buildings, such as wind towers (Brajeel), oriel (mashrabia), alleyways (sukaik), internal arches and others through replicating them in an enhanced manner, while taking into consideration the aesthetic and technical dimensions of those elements such that the heritage-inspired stations would match the traditional souqs in the locality and look like a natural extension of the Heritage & Diving Village, fitting well with the antique & existing control towers in the area.
Upon concluding his tour Al Tayer expressed his delight with the work progress in various locations of the project, and commended the efforts of all personnel working tirelessly to complete the project. However, he called on the contracting company to do more to ensure opening of all stations on time.
