DOHA - The GCC's most ambitious rail project will be discussed at a conference to be held at Park Hyatt in Dubai next month.
The two-day conference titled Middle East Rail Projects 2007 which is being organised by Meed Conferences will be preceded by a pre-conference workshop on Managing and mitigating risk in mega projects aimed at clients, designers and project managers.
Middle East Rail Projects 2007, say the organisers, is anticipated to be more popular and exciting than ever, with handfuls of new speakers already registered.
A session at the opening of the conference to be held on October 30 will provide an overview of existing and planned railways in the Middle East with the prospect of integrating the railway network in the Middle East North Africa region and Europe explored.
Topics to be debated at the session will focus on forecasting population future passenger traffic in the Middle East and analysing the economic benefits that railway networks could bring to the region as well as the assessment of the progress in introducing railway transportation systems in the region.
A session titled ' The GCC Railway: Preparing for an integrated network' will provide a status report on the region's most ambitious rail project and also look at the role of the GCC Committee in setting railway standards and integration.
The assessment of opportunities arising from a comprehensive system of transportation and next steps to be taken will also be discussed.
Participants at the conference will get acquainted with the Dubai metro project under the theme 'A vision taking shape' featuring a progress report on the red and green lines, an update on the purple and blue lines, plans for an integrated public transport system and challenges and opportunities.
The Abu Dhabi public transportation master-plan will be detailed on the first day of the conference providing forecast for future traffic volumes and the need to ease congestion as well as bridge and viaduct requirements for the Abu Dhabi Metro.
Plans for an integrated urban transportation system in Abu Dhabi and an outline of challenges and investment opportunities will be discussed at the session.
A forecast of passenger growth rates in the UAE will be discussed at a session titled 'UAE Passenger rail transportation: exploring an integrated concept'.
During the session the challenges of transport infrastructure and mobility for sustainable future and how the Dubai Light Rail transit project is setting the standard will be explored.
Other sessions at the conference are dedicated to an overview of Saudi Arabia's key rail projects and an update on the Saudi Landbridge project.
The second day of the conference will focus on planning and inter-urban rail transportation systems in Syria, Jordan as a future logistics hub for passengers and freight traffic, Iran delivering a progress report on the Tehran Metro expansion and progress on implementing a light rail public transit.
© The Peninsula 2007
