Sunday, Feb 21, 2010
Gulf News
Dubai Seven more stations on the Red Line of the Dubai Metro will open on April 25 as the issues related to delayed payments to the contractor have been resolved, a top official at the Dubai Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) said.
This will bring the total number of operational stations to 18 out of the 29 on the Red Line. Eleven stations have already opened.
Also, the opening date of the Green Line of the Metro has been revised. It will no longer open in October 2010, the earlier revised date.
"The Green Line will now be operational in August 2011," Mattar Al Tayer, Chairman of the Board and Executive Director of the RTA said in a statement yesterday.
Construction on the 76km-long Metro project was primarily delayed due to a dispute over the non-payment of dues by the RTA to the Japanese consortium building the Metro. The contractor had suspended construction of the Green Line a couple of months ago.
Cash injections
Al Tayer said: "The RTA will provide the biggest portion of cash injections out of its budget allocated by the Dubai Government to cover the cost of the remaining works on the Red and Green Lines." The government has approved a Dh10.7 billion budget for the RTA this year.
See also Page 2
By Ashfaq Ahmed
Gulf News 2010. All rights reserved.
