Skip to main content

Abu Dhabi unveils new public transport plan

The new public transport plan for Abu Dhabi in the UAE will consist of bus rapid transit (BRT) and two light-rail tram lines, while the planned 130-km railway network has been shortened to 70-km, according to the department of transport (DoT). The first phase of the metro railway is expected to operate by 2020 and it will cover 18km. The metro trains will travel at 80 to 100 km per hour. There will be two light railway lines that cover 40km that will travel at an average speed of 20 km per hour and the BRT
March 29, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
The new public transport plan for Abu Dhabi in the UAE will consist of bus rapid transit (BRT) and two light-rail tram lines, while the planned 130-km railway network has been shortened to 70-km, according to the 1830 Abu Dhabi Department of Transportation (DoT).

The first phase of the metro railway is expected to operate by 2020 and it will cover 18km. The metro trains will travel at 80 to 100 km per hour. There will be two light railway lines that cover 40km that will travel at an average speed of 20 km per hour and the BRT with dedicated bus lanes is scheduled to operate in 2016. The light railway system is expected to be completed in 2018.

Abu Dhabi DoT predicts that the public transport system will handle 823,000 passengers per day and save 102 million hours of travelling time a year by 2030. The monetary value of travelling hours saved is estimated at US$1.03 billion and the number of accidents will be reduced by 23,000.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Masdar Institute and Abu Dhabi Department of Transport sign MoU
    December 24, 2012
    Abu Dhabi's Department of Transport (DoT) and Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, an independent, research-driven graduate-level university focused on advanced energy and sustainable technologies, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to establish a collaborative partnership on exchange of information in transportation. The MoU will enable the sharing of information on Abu Dhabi's public transport systems and basic traffic data to be used by Masdar Institute for a research project. The proj
  • ‘Formation flying’ engineering trains used to upgrade railway
    February 16, 2017
    In a bid to increase efficiencies and reduce delays for passengers, the UK’s Network Rail is trialling ‘formation flying’ engineering trains to repair and renew the 20,000 miles of railway track it is responsible for maintaining. It says this new approach to engineering could potentially save taxpayer-funded Network Rail US$313,000 (£250,000) per week in costs by allowing trains to run at higher speeds once engineering is complete. The pioneering technique was used successfully at Sandy, Bedfordshire, on
  • San Francisco plans express lane network across Bay Area
    February 25, 2015
    Colin Sowman looks at plans to convert 240km (150 miles) of HOV/car pool lanes. While some authorities have debated the conversion of high occupancy vehicle lanes (HOV) into express or managed lanes allowing toll paying single-occupant vehicles to avoid congestion, San Francisco’s Bay Area Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) has acted. It is converting 240km (150 miles) of HOV/car pool lanes to express lanes and last fall the MTC’s Bay Area Infrastructure Financing Authority selected TransCore to d
  • South Africa to upgrade public transport
    October 2, 2013
    Speaking at the launch of South Africa’s 2013 Transport Month, Transport Minister Dipuo Peters pledged to spend more than US$500 million on planning, building and operating integrated public transport networks in more than thirteen cities in the country. The major cities of Johannesburg and Cape Town have already constructed over 20 kilometres of dedicated bus lanes. Both cities will expand operations to carry up to 100 thousand passengers a day on each system, while the bus rapid transport system in Joh