Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority has opened a 985-metre bridge that can reduce travel time from 12 to four minutes for motorists travelling from Jumeirah Street towards Infinity Bridge through Al Mina Street.
The two lanes can handle 3,200 vehicles an hour, in the latest phase of a Dh5.3 billion ($1.44 billion) road expansion project that aims to improve traffic flow.
“The new bridge will ease congestion and reduce travel time by 67 per cent through providing uninterrupted traffic flow across the new bridge without need to stop at traffic signals,” Dubai’s transport authority said in a statement on Saturday.
The bridge is part of phase 4 of Al Shindagha Corridor Improvement Project, which encompasses a 4.8km area from the intersection of Sheikh Rashid Road with Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Street to the Falcon Intersection on Al Mina Street.
“Phase 4 also includes five additional bridges totalling 3.1km. The scope covers 4.8 kilometres of road enhancements, along with upgrades to key surface intersections on Jumeirah Street, Al Mina Street, and Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah Street. Two pedestrian bridges are also planned, one on Sheikh Rashid Road and another on Al Mina Street,” the authority said.
“The phase contributes to providing a free-flowing traffic along the corridor. The total capacity of all lanes is around 19,400 vehicles per hour.”
During the second quarter of this year, the authority said another three-lane bridge, spanning 78 metres, will connect Infinity Bridge to Al Wasl Street via Al Mina Street.
“One operational the bridge will support up to 4,800 vehicles an hour,” the authority added.
The vast infrastructure project started in 2016 and authorities expect it to reduce travel times from 104 minutes to 16 minutes by 2030.
The authority is leading a comprehensive road-building strategy to help ensure Dubai's infrastructure can keep pace with continued population growth. Dubai's population passed 3.5 million in 2022 and now stands at more than 3.9 million.
Dubai Government is set to invest heavily in infrastructure in the years ahead as it sets its sights on growing its population to 5.8 million by 2040.
In October, Dubai unveiled its largest government budget for 2025-2027, with spending of Dh272 billion.
In 2025, expenditure is set at Dh86.26 billion, with 46 per cent to be spent on infrastructure, including roads, bridges, transport systems and renewable energy centres, as well as the Al Maktoum Airport development.
In March, a 1.2km bridge that can handle 4,800 vehicles an hour was opened to to improve traffic flow from Infinity Bridge, over Dubai Creek, from Al Mina Street to Sheikh Rashid Road, which begins in Bur Dubai, and the Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Street junction.
In January, a 300-metre bridge connecting Sheikh Zayed Road to the Mall of the Emirates was opened to ease traffic levels in one of the busiest districts of the emirate.
The bridge provides direct access to the mall and aims to cut travel times in half, the RTA said at the time.
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