Canal flyover on Shaikh Zayed Road to open on July 1

Saturday, Jun 25, 2016

Dubai: The second half of the Shaikh Zayed road flyover, part of the Dubai Water Canal project, will open on Friday, allowing traffic to flow from the both sides, the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) announced on Saturday.

Work on the 16-lane flyover began in November 2014 and in January this year RTA opened the first part of the flyover for Sharjah-bound traffic.

From July 1, six lanes of the Abu Dhabi-bound bridge will open for traffic, while two more lanes will open mid-July.

Mattar Al Tayer, Director-General and Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of RTA, said that work on the canal is on schedule and 92 per cent of the project has been completed.

The 800-metre-long flyover, located near interchange two on Shaikh Zayed road, rises up to 8.5 metres, allowing yachts and boats to operate underneath.

Opening of the flyover fully will allow for the remaining canal drilling work underneath to be completed.

Mattar Al Tayer, Director-General and Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of RTA said: “By opening the southern bridge, RTA has effectively completed all works listed under Phase One of the Dubai Water Canal Project.”

Phase One included construction of an 800 metre-long flyover on the Sheikh Zayed Road comprising 8 lanes in each direction, building a traffic diversion on Shaikh Zayed road to allow for the construction of the flyover, besides shifting the utility lines in the vicinity.

“This bridge is characterised by a unique design with waterfalls flowing from the top, and smart lighting fixtures controlled via a dedicated app supported by a database for tracking the lighting condition, and sharing information and operational commands. A full coverage is provided all over the place enabling RTA to interact with the social media through 3G technology,” said Al Tayer.

Earlier this month, RTA opened Al Wasl Road flyover comprising three lanes in the direction of Dubai and two lanes in the direction of Abu Dhabi in addition to two lanes for serving the traffic coming from Al Wasl Road heading to Al Athaar Road.

He said the traffic flow on the bridge has improved massively, facilitating the movement of motorists from Jumeirah 1 to Jumeirah 2 & 3 as well as Al Hadiqa Road and vice-versa.

He said that around 50,000 vehicles use the bridge every day.

In March, RTA opened Phase Two of the project with the completion of a bridge serving traffic inbound from Al Athaar Road, heading to Al Hadiqa Road across Al Wasl Road.

“Work is gathering pace on the Jumeirah flyover, where the contractor is currently putting the finishing touches to the project and is set to open in July,” said Al Tayer.

He added: “Once the three flyovers crossing the Canal are open, the contractor of Phase III will complete the canal digging works underneath the flyovers, besides building quay walls of the canal, constructing three footbridges linking the two banks of the canal at distinctive locations, and setting up 10 marine transit stations.”

Work will also include landfilling to build an artificial peninsula along the Jumeirah Park that will double the beach line of the park, increase the park area, and make a room for more leisure activities.

Staff Report