Passengers traveling to Liwa and Madinat Zayed will gain rail access earlier than planned, with both stations now set to begin service on November 30, 2026 — timed to coincide with the opening of the Al Dhafra Region’s events and festivals calendar.
That schedule change came at the direction of Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Ruler’s Representative in the Al Dhafra Region, who framed the earlier launch as a way to ease visitor movement and widen access to destinations and activities across the region through the rail network.
The instruction was issued at Al Nakheel Palace in Abu Dhabi during talks with an Etihad Rail delegation. Chief Executive Shadi Malak headed the group, joined by a number of the company’s senior executives. Also present was Nasser Mohammed Al Mansouri, Undersecretary of the Ruler’s Representative Court in Al Dhafra Region.
Discussion at the palace covered where the UAE National Railway Network currently stands, what passenger facilities are planned for Al Dhafra, and cooperative work underway in Al Sila’a. The delegation additionally walked Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed through the company’s recent milestones — chief among them the June 30 start of passenger runs linking Abu Dhabi and Fujairah, the country’s first passenger rail service.
Ridership figures since operations began were another item on the agenda, with the delegation reporting substantial demand that the company attributes to customer trust in what the national network delivers.
Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed pointed to the opening of the Mohammed bin Zayed City passenger railway station in Abu Dhabi by Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council, as a strategic turning point for the transport and infrastructure sector. He tied the achievement to a leadership vision centered on a modern, integrated, and sustainable network that strengthens links nationwide and feeds into broader development.
He credited backing from President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan for strategic national projects as a foundational element behind the country’s push toward an integrated, sustainable, and world-class transport system, and commended Etihad Rail for work he said improves connectivity nationwide.
Emirati personnel running the passenger service also drew recognition from the Ruler’s Representative, who noted the operation is set to grow as more stations come online — evidence, he said, of the country’s capacity to deliver globally competitive projects across sectors and hold a position as a benchmark in infrastructure development and operations.
