Dubai’s Roads & Transport Authority (RTA) has invited firms to express interest by 30 April in working on the new metro link connecting to the Dubai Expo 2020 site.

Known as “Route 2020”, the project is the largest infrastructure scheme that will be built for the Expo. It involves building a 15-kilometre-long line branching off the existing Red Line at Nakheel Harbour and Tower station close between Ibn Battuta Mall and Jumeirah Lake Towers stations.

About 11km of the line will be elevated, with five elevated stations and two underground stations. According to the RTA, the work involves:

• Civil works including detailed design, architecture, and mechanical, electrical and plumbing (MEP) works, together with earthworks, viaducts, bored tunnel, and stations
• Railway systems
• Rolling stock supply

In January, MEED reported that the RTA is preparing to tender the contract in July after expressions of interest (EoIs) are sought from contractors. Suppliers and contractors have already been in contact with the RTA.

Japan’s Mitsubishi is expected to be a strong contender for the project, as it built the first two lines of the Dubai Metro network in a consortium with two other Japanese companies, Obayashi Corporation and Kajima Corporation, and Turkey’s Yapi Merkezi.

MEED reported in December last year that the RTA was in discussions with local developer Nakheel about connecting Discovery Gardens to the metro network. The roads around Discovery Gardens are heavily congested during peak hours and alternative modes of transport for residents should help reduce the volume of traffic.

In July 2014, the RTA awarded a joint venture of the US’ Parsons International and France’s Systra the contract to complete the preliminary engineering for the new metro line. Work on the study began in August.