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A MAJOR expansion of a key highway leading to Bahrain International Airport has been derailed pending finalisation of the proposed Bahrain Metro project.
The Works, Municipalities Affairs and Urban Planning Ministry has told the Muharraq Municipal Council that work on expanding the Airport Highway has been put on hold until the Transportation and Telecommunications Ministry presents its plans for the metro.
However, council financial, administrative and legislative committee chairman and airport area councillor Bassem Al Majdami said yesterday that both the projects were vital to the development of the country, but the highway expansion could not be delayed.
He added that now was the best time to start work on expanding the highway since traffic was relatively low due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“When things pick up and the place returns to full capacity it will be so much more difficult to carry out any roadwork.
“Anyway, the metro lines will be metres above the ground so any work on the highway will not be affected.”
Mr Al Majdami said during peak hours, it took people a long time to get in and out of the airport area.
“The complaints are growing as many are taking their children to school, returning back to office, or want to catch a flight or just enjoy shopping in the new airport.
“The Airport Highway is a major link to all the road networks in the area, considering that there are only two ways to the airport – through Arad Bay or Al Hedaya areas.
“Work has to start early next year because any delay would be catastrophic whenever the place returns to normalcy.”
The Bahrain Metro project, estimated to cost between $1 billion and $2bn, will cover a total area of 109km with four transit lines to be built in phases.
Phase one comprises two lines with an estimated length of 28.6km and includes 20 stations with two interchanges.
The two lines aim to connect the key transit points including the airport as well as major residential, commercial and educational areas in Bahrain.
The proposed metro stations in the red corridor include Seef District, Manama, Bahrain Bay, Muharraq and Bahrain International Airport.
The blue corridor covers Juffair, Diplomatic Area, Manama, Al Farouq Junction, Salmaniya, Adhari, Isa Town and the Educational Area.
Interchanges proposed are at Bab Al Bahrain and Central Market stations.
Bahrain’s nationwide monorail network was first proposed and approved by the Cabinet in 2008.
Interest in the project has already been expressed by the Japanese, as previously reported in the GDN.
MPs in March called on the government to save more than BD1 million in consultancy work by handing it over to researchers and students at Bahrain’s universities.
Parliament public utilities and environment affairs committee chairman Mohammed Buhamood had said that the BD1.7m allocated for consultancy was “too much” with the findings “almost predictable” most of the time.
The government has already spent BD450,000 between 2019 and 2020, while it plans to spend BD770,000 this year and BD480,000 in the next year on consultancy.
The expenditure was sanctioned in the 2021-2022 national budget approved by legislators in March this year.
Once a contractor has been assigned it would take ‘five to seven years’ to complete phase one, Transportation and Telecommunications Minister Kamal Ahmed told the GDN earlier.
mohammed@gdn.com.bh
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