Source: www.gulf-times.com
The proposed Doha Metro rail, which will come up in a few years’ time, will provide an effective public transport solution for the city’s growing traffic problems, a senior official of the Invensys Rail (Mena region) said yesterday.
Speaking at the Meed Conference on Qatar Transport projects 2010 at Grand Hayat Hotel, The Middle East, North Africa and Turkey regional director of Invensys Rail Ala Ghanem said the successful introduction of a Metro service in Dubai and plans to develop similar facilities in other GCC states had proved the need for an efficient and effective public transport network in the entire region, including in Qatar.
Even though the Doha Metro project’s costs will be enormous, its benefits will be numerous, he said.
Ghanem said the 350km of lines with four major stations and many other satellite stations would cost the country not less than $7bn (at the current level). “This is because in Qatar everything associated with its needs to be newly built as no railway infrastructure exists in the country,” he explained.
While mentioning the costs, the speaker said at least 60% of the expenses should be earmarked for implementation and the remaining amount for its operations, which include payments to the staff.
He cited his company’s successful implementation of the system in Istanbul and Madrid among other European capitals.
“Railing” against companies offering cheaper rail solutions, Ghanem said what ultimately mattered in the effective implementation was quality and one cannot compromise on that as the rail system deals directly with the country’s residents. “So naturally, the system is bound to be expensive if safety and security are the main concerns of its operators,” said the Invensys official.
Invesnsys is a global technology group, supplying solutions, consultancy, and equipment to monitor, control and automate processes in a wide range of environments. The UK-headquartered company has around 30,000 employees operating in 60 countries.
