Dubai’s Shindagha Bridge Project 75% complete

Our correspondent

HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, inspected some of the transport projects of Dubai on October 31. He made a tour of the Shindagha Corridor Project, a large project of the Roads and Transport Authority of Dubai, and checked on its construction progress.

Once complete, the Shindagha Corridor Project is expected to reduce the journey time from one end to the other from 104 minutes to 16 minutes. The project which extends 13 kilometres from Sheikh Rashid Street through Al Mina Street and Al Khaleej Street up to Cairo Street, costs Dh5 billion.

It is expected to be complete by 2021, and will serve major development projects in the surrounding areas, including Deira Islands, Dubai Waterfront, Port Rashid and Dubai Maritime City.

The project was launched by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, in 2018. The bridge is part of the third phase of the Dh5 billion Shindagha Corridor project extending 13 km along Sheikh Rashid Street. It consists of six lanes in each direction in addition to a pedestrian crossing.

The bridge extends about 295 metres, and 150 metres of it is over the Dubai Creek. Rising over 15 metres above the water level, it allows a whole range of boats on the Creek to pass under it.

The bridge will sport an iconic design – an arch shaped in the form of the mathematical symbol for infinity. The top of the infinity arch rises 42 metres. About 2,400 tonnes of steel will be used in the construction of the bridge.

Originally designed to replace the 45-year-old Shindagha Tunnel, the only crossing in the area, the new bridge is now set to run parallel to the tunnel, both serving traffic simultaneously.

The Shindagha Tunnel is the only underwater road crossing the Dubai Creek and connects the neighborhoods of Al Ras and Deira. The four-lane tunnel is currently one of the busiest crossings on the creek, with more than 100,000 vehicles passing through it on an average daily.