With 60 per cent of the work almost completed on the line, RTA says it has completed tunnelling work before schedule, and the construction of the main power station in Jebel Ali.

The line which is mostly elevated will make its way from Rashidiya through a tunnel section under Deira and Bur Dubai, and along a viaduct on Sheikh Zayed road to Jebel Ali. Adnan Al Hammadi, the RTA’s director of construction, rail projects, says: “Substructures, piers and concourses for stations like Jebel Ali Industrial, Dubal, Ibn Battuta, Al-Barsha and the Burj al-Arab are completed. Piling works for the stations and viaducts at Rashidiya, Emirates and Garhoud are completed while the steel structure for the station with cladding is completed at terminal 3 [at Dubai international airport]. Around 55 per cent of the work at Jebel Ali Depot is completed. The depot will consist of an operation control centre, main power station, and a yard equipped to store 44 trains and conduct regular service and maintenance of the trains.”

With the civil and construction works making progress on the Red Line, the Rail Agency of the RTA is gearing up for the commencement of test track operations in August 2008 with the first train demonstration on the Red Line targeted for May 2008. The test track is being laid between Ibn Battuta to Jebel Ali Depot and comprises around 10 kilometres of track.