Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has announced a major breakthrough in its ongoing infrastructure efforts, with 70% of the Umm Suqeim Street Improvement Project now complete—promising significant traffic relief for more than one million residents across key communities.
His Excellency Mattar Al Tayer, Director General and Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of RTA, revealed the update during a site visit, emphasizing the project’s impact on the city’s east-west mobility corridor. “This project will reduce travel time between Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road and Al Khail Road by 61%, cutting the journey from 9.7 minutes to just 3.8 minutes,” Al Tayer said.
Spanning 4.6 kilometers from Al Khail Road to Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road, the project features a newly constructed 800-meter tunnel near Kings’ School, offering four lanes in each direction. This development is part of the broader Umm Suqeim–Al Qudra corridor upgrade, which stretches 16 kilometers from Jumeirah Street to Emirates Road.
The improved corridor is expected to handle up to 16,000 vehicles per hour in both directions and provide better access to neighborhoods such as Al Barsha South, Dubai Hills, Arjan, and Dubai Science Park.
RTA is also integrating smart technologies into the project. Drones and artificial intelligence are being used to track construction progress and optimize operations, reportedly doubling field efficiency and cutting site survey time by 60%.
This isn’t the first enhancement to the Umm Suqeim corridor. RTA completed earlier phases in 2013 and 2020, including multi-lane bridges, intersections, and a flyover connecting Dubai Hills and Al Barsha South—laying the groundwork for today’s large-scale mobility improvements.
