Shaikh Zayed Road in the final stages of expansion

The expansion of the road is being carried out along with the improvement project of all interchanges on the Shaikh Zayed Road, which are being transformed from simple interchanges to free-flow cloverleaf interchanges.

By the end of this year, the road will have five instead of the present four lanes between its Second and Fourth Interchanges, while Dubai Municipality would continue to work over the next few years to convert the whole highway, from the Dubai World Trade Centre Intersection to the border of Abu Dhabi, into a five-lane thoroughfare.

The construction of the project on the Third Interchange, which began in the first week of October last year, is also on track and expected to be over as per the civic body’s schedule. The Dh97 million-enhancement project on the Third Interchange, also known as the Al Manara Interchange, follows similar improvement projects already carried out at the Second and Fourth Interchanges on the Shaikh Zayed Road.

The project involves construction of a network of new bridges and additional lanes, which will ensure a smooth traffic, flow in the area which witnesses high vehicular traffic during peak hours. The new cloverleaf-shaped interchange, works of which began about a year ago and are expected to be over by January next year, would accommodate the projected growth in traffic.

As part of the project, the existing Interchange is being reconstructed at its current location. The proposed configuration for the junction is a full cloverleaf with all loops accommodating one travel lane except one loop that will accommodate two travel lanes. The interchange would also include the construction of a two-lane directional ramp located to the South of the interchange to provide direct access to the Al Quoz Industrial area.

The project, apart from the construction of a fifth lane on both directions of Shaikh Zayed Road, also includes the widening and improvements of the service road on both sides of the highway between the second and fourth interchanges.

The plan also includes the construction of signalled junctions on Road eight on Al Quoz side in addition to improvements to the Al Manara-Al Wasl Road intersection. The construction of all associated roadway signage, street lighting, relocation or protection of utilities, construction of utility crossing as well as the construction of storm drainage and irrigation systems necessary for this new roadway improvement is also being undertaken under this project.

The improvement projects are the result of a comprehensive survey carried out by the municipality to look for solutions for tackling the problem of increasing traffic on the road, and are considered essential to cope with the projected growth of the area.

In line with the plans of the civic body, the Roads Department plans to replace all the interchanges on Shaikh Zayed Road with multi-connectivity interchanges over the next few years.