Dubai has received two bids from consultants for the contract to complete the preliminary engineering for the new metro line that will serve the Dubai Expo 2020 site, next to Al-Maktoum International airport, in the Jebel Ali area.

The emirate’s Roads & Transport Authority (RTA) received bids on 28 April from a joint venture of US-based Parsons International and France’s Systra, and UK-based WSP.

It is understood the link could be a standalone system, meaning it could operate using different rolling stock and systems to the existing Green and Red lines of the Dubai Metro.

There are four possible alignments for the new line running from an interchange station on the Red Line in the Jumeirah Lake Towers/Jebel Ali area up to the Expo site.

One earlier proposed solution was a new line that would create options for stations at existing residential and industrial areas not currently on the metro network. That would run from the metro car park at Nakheel Harbour and Tower station, past Discovery Gardens, the Greens Community and Dubai Investment Park (DIP), before heading out to the Expo site next to the new airport.

Another alignment under consideration is an extension beyond Jebel Ali that will head inland to the Expo site. This solution would mean longer journey times to the Expo, and would provide fewer opportunities to build new stations for existing centres of population and industry.

The bids were submitted two days after the organisers of Dubai Expo 2020 revealed new details about the preparations that are under way for the event.

A mandatory document is currently being prepared that provides greater detail about the masterplan for hosting the event. The document will be submitted for approval to the Bureau of International Expositions (BIE), the governing body of the World Expo, in 2015.

Upon approval of the document, which is expected to coincide with the conclusion of the Milan Expo 2015, site-readiness activity will commence on the Dubai Trade Centre-Jebel Ali site to prepare for full-fledged construction.

The 438-hectare site, which includes a dedicated gated 150-hectare Expo area and a surrounding residential, hospitality and logistics zone, will play host to the 25 million visitors expected at the event, which will run from 20 October 2020 to 10 April 2021.

Organisers have set a target date for all major construction activities to be completed on site by October 2019, allowing for a full year of readiness testing across networks, systems and technologies. Expo Village – a residential community development providing full-time housing facilities for staff from participating countries working on the Expo – will target completion by 2018, following which pavilion construction activities will start.

A key component of the masterplan is three distinct zones, each dedicated to one of the sub-themes of mobility, sustainability and opportunity, which will converge at the central Al-Wasl Plaza.

The flagship UAE Pavilion will feature prominently, in addition to a Welcome Pavilion and an Innovation Pavilion near the North entrance surrounding the central plaza. The development will also contain three souks – one at the heart of each theme zone – that will showcase smaller pavilions surrounded by the larger country pavilions on the outer rings. This will ensure maximum visibility and footfall for all participants. Additionally, each thematic zone will also have one feature entertainment venue and a specialised theme pavilion.

At its peak, the Dubai Expo 2020 exhibition site at Dubai Trade Centre-Jebel Ali is designed to accommodate up to 300,000 visitors, with average weekday attendance expected at 153,000. To maximise the use of public transport systems in delivering visitors to the site, an extension to the Dubai Metro will be constructed, along with a dedicated station on the Expo site to encourage usage of public transport systems.

Additionally, a bespoke zero-emission bus service will transport visitors to and from the Expo from pick-up points throughout the UAE, which will be situated in key hotel and major population areas.