THE Dubai Metro project work on the Green Line has been achieving a completion rate ranging between 50 per cent and 80 per cent and is expected to start operations in the second half of this year.

Mattar Al Tayer, chairman of the Board and Executive Director of the Dubai Roads & Transport Authority (RTA), emphasised that progress on the work was on schedule during a tour of the project, which took him to the Al Qusais depot, the command and control centre, the multi-level park-and-ride facilities, Al Nahdah Station, Bani Yas Station and Al Ras Station.
According to Al Tayer, work at the Al Qusais depot has exceeded 70 per cent. The depot, a garage for maintaining and cleaning the carriages, is fitted with air-conditioners and advanced firefighting systems.
It comprises a parking area for train carriages and has a capacity to house 60 trains at a time. It includes a rail operations systems control centre, which ensures the safety of doors, brakes and engines in each train separately, as well as the air-conditioning and other sophisticated sub systems.
The trains systems control centre is fitted with state-of-the-art technologies enabling full control of the daily metro operation on both the Red and the Green lines. The centre also provides control, supervision and monitoring of rail traffic and systems through supervising the functionality of the auto train movement, communication systems, electrical transformers, and power feed system for both the trains and metro stations.
The multi-level park-and-ride facility with a capacity to house 2,350 vehicles, has been designed to provide ample space for feeder buses, ensure smooth traffic flow and accommodate huge numbers of cars at the same time.
Al Nahdah Station, which is 50 per cent complete, is an elevated station that has the capacity to handle 1,100 passengers per hour in each direction. The station extends about 130 m in length and 30 m in width and has two entry points fitted with escalators and lifts.
Bani Yas Station, which is one of six underground stations on the Green Line, measures about 144 m in length and has a width ranging from 22 m to 53 m with a capacity to handle about 8,000 passengers per hour. Work on the station is more than 80 per cent complete while the interiors work is 80 per cent complete.
Work on the Al Ras Station has exceeded 50 per cent. This station is one of two that features a heritage design illustrating the history and legacy of the UAE.