The new railway service will connect the two cities at speeds of up to 320km/h
Construction has officially started on the Abu Dhabi section of the UAE’s first high-speed railway, bringing the country one step closer to a future where travelling between the two cities could take just 30 minutes.
The ambitious 150km Abu Dhabi-Dubai high-speed line will eventually link key destinations across both emirates, with trains designed to travel at speeds of up to 320km/h.
And yes, that could make getting from one side of the UAE to the other considerably quicker.
According to a recent report on railjournal.com, work began on the 96.9km Abu Dhabi section this month, with Turkish contractor Kalyon Holding confirming that construction had started on its part of the project.
The railway is currently scheduled for completion in 2031, so there’s still a little while to wait before you can swap the motorway for a high-speed train.
But the scale of the project is already pretty impressive.
Construction includes an 11.2km dual-bore tunnel, as well as four stations serving some of Abu Dhabi’s biggest destinations.
The Abu Dhabi section will stretch from Al Zahiyah to the Abu Dhabi-Dubai border, with stops planned for some of the capital’s most important areas.
The planned stations include:
Al Zahiyah – underground
Saadiyat Island – elevated
Yas Island – at grade
Abu Dhabi International Airport – underground
The wider route will then continue towards Al Jaddaf in Dubai, giving travellers a direct connection between the two emirates.
For anyone living in Abu Dhabi and regularly travelling to Dubai, or vice versa, it could eventually mean a much easier alternative to sitting in traffic.
The line is being designed for speeds of up to 350km/h, while trains are expected to operate at up to 320km/h.
The headline journey time will be 30 minutes between Yas Island and Al Jaddaf, making it particularly handy for anyone heading between two of the UAE’s major entertainment and lifestyle hubs.
Imagine leaving Yas Island, sitting back with your coffee and arriving in Dubai before you’ve had time to finish it.
The Abu Dhabi-Dubai connection is only the beginning.
The project’s second phase will create an inner-city rail network around Abu Dhabi with 10 stations, while a third phase is planned to extend the line east towards Al Ain.
A fourth phase would then take the network north from Dubai towards Sharjah.
So, eventually, the UAE’s high-speed rail network could stretch far beyond the initial Abu Dhabi-Dubai route.
While the high-speed railway is still some years away, Etihad Rail’s conventional passenger service is already up and running.
Regular services between Abu Dhabi and Fujairah launched on 30 June, and Etihad Rail reported that it had sold 70,000 tickets by 3 August.
The network is also expanding, with Dubai and Al Dhaid stations scheduled to open on 30 September, followed by Liwa and Madinat Zayed later in the year, and further stations planned for Al Dhafra and Sharjah.
So while we might have to wait until 2031 for those seriously speedy Abu Dhabi-Dubai journeys, the UAE’s rail revolution is already well underway.
