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Longest tunnel in UAE to have art works on walls

DUBAI - The longest tunnel in the country, which is currently under construction near Dubai International Airport, will have art works on its sidewalls, Dubai Municipality announced yesterday.

Engineer Nasser Ahmed Saeed, director of the roads department of the municipality, said that the department had started accepting designs for wall, which is being built as part of a Dh686 million road network project around Dubai International Airport that will serve the traffic expected to be generated from the massive expansion of the airport.

One of the offers submitted so far includes art works of Dubai's modern architectural landmarks standing alongside symbols of the national heritage, including the traditional dhow, and historical buildings.

The tunnel project is part of Dubai Municipality's plans to improve traffic in the city, which is emerging as the region's air travel hub.

The1.5-kilometre tunnel, longer than the Shindagha Tunnel, will run beneath the airport.

As part of the project, all roads around the airport will be linked together to cope with the massive expansion plans that are in the offing, given the volume of traffic that such expansion could spawn.

The 1.5-kilometre tunnel, to be completed in two years, would be part of a network with shorter tunnels.

The number of people using the airport is projected to reach 42 million by 2020, from 13 million in 2000.

The tunnel will have four lanes in each direction, shoulders and pavements, which will ease traffic flow in and around the airport.

Plans are also afoot for a comprehensive road network to serve the arrival and departure areas of the airport, which is expected to considerably ease traffic around the airport.