The Qatar Railways Company (Qatar Rail) has lined up three tenders related to the Doha Metro for 2017 release and another four potential tenders in 2018.

The three tenders expected in 2017 include a real-estate construction contract for 12 mixed-use transit-oriented development (TOD) projects within the proximity of selected Doha Metro stations, and one contract each for a park and ride project and station retail outlets.

The plot areas that have been allocated to Qatar Rail by Qatar Ministry of Municipality and Urban Planning (MMUP) for the TOD projects include:

• Al-Doha al-Jaber
• Al-Matar
• Al-Qassar
• Al-Rayyan al-Qadeem
• Al-Sudan
• Bin Mahmoud
• Hamad Hospital
• Lusail
• Umm-Ghuwalina
• West Bay
• Msheireb

Other sites being considered for the TOD could include Joaan, Al-Waab, Obqba Ibn Nafie, Qatar National Museum, Leyatifiya and Al-Mansoura, according to Martin Breheny, procurement specialist at Qatar Rail, who addressed MEED’s Qatar Projects Conference on 16 March.

The TODs aim to increase population density around the metro stations in order to encourage public transport use, generate new revenue, and provide opportunities for Qatari businesses.

Ongoing tenders include the operations and facilities management contracts for the first phase of the Doha Metro and the Lusail Tram, as well as the design package for the real-estate construction project.

Qatar Rail expects to mobilise the facilities management and operations contracts for the Doha Metro and Lusail Tram by 2018, which means it could then launch tenders for contracts dealing with retail and advertising revenue streams as well as marketing and smart services.

The first phase of the Doha Metro is expected to become operational by 2019. It involves the construction of 37 stations and 63 kilometres of tunnelling work and about 18km of elevated and at-grade track.