A new 1.4km long bridge will be completed by 2026 and connect Bur Dubai To Dubai Island. The announcement by the Emirate’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) took place on September 13, Wednesday.

The Bridge will be built with 4 major lanes and aims to operate 16,000 vehicles per hour from both directions.

The Emirate’s Road and Transport Authority also said that this project is a part of the Shindagha Corridor Improvement Project and will fulfill the aims set by the project authorities.

An agreement has been signed between the Road and Transport Authority and the Real Estate Developer Nakheel to complete the construction process of building direct entry and exit in the Dubai Island Project from Bur Dubai. The agreement was regularised by the Director-General, Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors, Mattar Al Tayer, and Mohammed Ibrahim Al Shaibani, the Chairman of the Board of Directors, Nakheel.

The project came to action with the direction of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the prime minister and vice president of UAE, and the Ruler of Dubai. He directed this initiative to complete the Al Shindagha Corridor Improvement Project. Al Shindagha Corridor Improvement Project, which also comes under the follow-up of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairman of the Executive Council and the Crown Prince of Dubai.

The bridge will span over 1425 metres including four lanes from each direction.

The Dubai Island project includes a direct entrance and exit point at Bur Dubai side spread through a bridge extended across the Dubai Creek between the Port Rashid Development Project and the Infinity Bridge. The bridge will be capable of serving up to 16,000 vehicles within an hour from both directions. This bridge will be located at a height of 15.5 meters above the water level of Dubai Creek, featuring a 75-meter-wide canal to make a way to move various types of ships to cross Dubai Creek.

Not only for vehicles but there will also be a dedicated lane for pedestrians and cyclists on one side of the bridge. At both ends of the bridge, the installed elevators will increase flexible moving facilities for cyclists and pedestrians.

Additionally, the project also includes 2,000 meters of surface road as an extension to join the existing roads on both ending sides of the bridge, Bur Dubai and Dubai Island. The Dubai Island project is expected to be operative by 2026.

A Mega Project for Dubai

 “This marks the second agreement under the initiative to provide entrances and exits leading to Dubai Islands, a venture that RTA successfully undertook in partnership with Nakheel in 2020. The project envisaged constructing three bridges at the junction of Al Khaleej Street and Abu Baker Al Siddique Road, spanning 1.6km that lead to Dubai Islands,” Al Tayer, the Director-General, Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors, RTA  said

According to Al Tayer, the Dubai Island Project is a mega project, that will cut down the travel time for the local residents and tourists. The project aims to minimize the moving time from 104 minutes to 16 minutes and serve up to 1 million travellers by 2030, and over 20 years, the project will save travel time worth Dh45 billion.

He further added, “This project forms a key phase of Al Shindagha Corridor Improvement Project. It is one of the largest projects currently being undertaken by RTA with a total estimated cost of Dh5.3 billion. It encompasses the construction of 15 intersections spanning 13km in total. Due to its massive scope, the project had been split into five phases. The Corridor serves Deira and Bur Dubai in addition to several development projects such as Dubai Islands, Dubai Seafront, Dubai Maritime City, and Port Rashid. As such, it is expected to serve about 1 million people. It will slash the travel time from 104 minutes to just 16 minutes by 2030, and the time saved over 20 years will be worth about Dh45 billion.”

A Step Toward Becoming a Smart City

According to the Director-General of Dubai Ruler’s Court, Managing Director of the Investment Corporation of Dubai, and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Nakheel, Mohammed Ibrahim Al Shaibani According to him, it will take Dubai one step closer to being a global hub of smart cities.

He said, “Nakheel and the RTA have both been at the forefront of innovation, looking at ways to develop sustainable environments, which further reinforce Dubai’s position as the global hub for innovation in developing infrastructure that shapes the future of smart cities. Being an integral waterfront development situated at the northern coastline of the emirate, Dubai Islands will be easily accessible by land and sea through the well-planned road bridges and water transport. We look forward to working with RTA to enhance the future vision of Dubai and to see Dubai Islands come to life.”

Deira Project

The project to construct the entrance to connect Dubai Island and Deira was finalized by RTA in 2020. The project was to upgrade the road entry and exit points toward Dubai Island at Abu Bakar Al Siddique Road and the junction of Al Khaleej Street. The project called for building 3 bridges spanning over 1.6km, which includes a two-lane bridge to provide smooth traffic flow in the North starting from Dubai Islands to Al Khaleej Street, and the other three-lane bridge which ensures smooth traffic in the South division from Dubai Islands to Al Khaleej Street to a two-lane bridge that operates smooth traffic from Al Khaleej Street southward to the Dubai Islands.