Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has partnered with Majid Al Futtaim Properties to inaugurate a 300-metre single-lane bridge on Sheikh Zayed Road, capable of handling up to 900 vehicles per hour.
The bridge offers direct access for motorists arriving from Abu Dhabi and Jebel Ali to the Mall of the Emirates car parks, according to an RTA statement.
The project also included the expansion and upgrading of the mall’s entrances, as well as improvements to surrounding roads, intersections, pedestrian pathways, and cycling tracks.
Mattar Al Tayer, Director General and Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of RTA, said: “This initiative is part of RTA’s ongoing collaboration with real estate developers to enhance road infrastructure serving property projects and shopping centres. The aim is to improve traffic flow and facilitate smoother mobility for residents and visitors across the city.”
Al Tayer added: “The project involved constructing a 300-metre single-lane bridge on Sheikh Zayed Road, enabling direct access for motorists from Abu Dhabi and Jebel Ali to the Mall of the Emirates car parks. It also included widening the southbound ramp at Umm Suqeim junction and upgrading the junction itself to improve access for vehicles coming from Umm Suqeim Street to the existing bridge leading to the car parks.”
The initiative further included upgrading 2.5 km of at-grade roads around Mall of the Emirates, developing six signalised intersections, and modifying the bus station at Mall of the Emirates Metro Station.
“It also converted the road next to the Kempinski Hotel from one-way to two-way traffic and enhanced pedestrian and cycling tracks, along with improvements to road paving, lighting, traffic signals, stormwater drainage, and landscaping,” he added.
Al Tayer noted that the new bridge cuts travel time for motorists coming from Abu Dhabi and Jebel Ali to the Mall of the Emirates from 10 minutes to just one minute.
Regarding upcoming projects, he said the Umm Suqeim Street Improvement Project will be next, spanning 6 km from its junction with Jumeirah Street to its junction with Al Khail Road.
The project will upgrade six junctions along Umm Suqeim Street, connecting it with Jumeirah Street, Al Wasl Street, Sheikh Zayed Road, First Al Khail Street, Al Asayel Street, and Al Khail Road.
