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Sheikh Mohammed launches next phase of Dubai’s AED 20 billion metro expansion
The Metro Blue Line is designed to integrate rail, reduce congestion, and support the city’s next wave of growth.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum has overseen the start of tunneling works for the Dubai Metro Blue Line, marking a key milestone in the Emirate’s AED 20 billion transport project.
At the site, he launched a 163-meter-long, 2,000-ton tunnel boring machine designed to operate around the clock, capable of excavating up to 17 meters per day as work progresses toward a September 9, 2029 completion target.
The scale of the Blue Line is ambitious, even by Dubai standards. The 30-kilometer route will be split evenly between underground and elevated tracks, with 14 stations serving an estimated one million people. The goal is not just expansion but optimization. Once operational, the line is expected to reduce traffic congestion across the city by 20 percent.
The project is as much about systems thinking as it is about scale. The Blue Line will link key growth corridors, from Ras Al Khor Industrial Area to Dubai Silicon Oasis and Dubai Creek Harbor, while integrating with existing metro routes and the future Etihad Rail network. It is being designed not as a standalone line but as a connective infrastructure for a rapidly evolving city.
Sheikh Mohammed framed the effort in those terms. “Investing in the transport sector is an investment in the future,” he said, positioning the Blue Line as part of a broader push to enhance Dubai’s global competitiveness and long-term sustainability.
That broader push is evident. Alongside the AED 20 billion Blue Line, Dubai is also investing AED 34 billion in the upcoming Gold Line, targeted for completion in 2032. Combined with a new global airport, expanded digital infrastructure, and ambitions around AI-powered government services, a clear pattern emerges. Dubai is building multiple futures at once and moving quickly.
Execution is central to that vision. More than 10,000 engineers and workers are currently deployed on the Blue Line, supported by 180 rail specialists focused on maintaining timelines and quality. Sheikh Mohammed described the effort as a race against time to deliver “the world’s newest and most beautiful metro.”
Viewed more broadly, the tunneling milestone marks more than the start of excavation. It signals the beginning of another large-scale experiment in how cities can grow without slowing down, using infrastructure not only to meet demand but to shape it.
