[Slugbelch]

http://img341.imageshack.us/img341/7435/koreatrain30ue.jpghttp://img429.imageshack.us/img429/9661/koreatrain54xh.jpg
Azerbaijan may buy Korean bullet trains
23 May 2006 [15:45]
Today.AZ (http://www.today.az/news/business/26441.html)

Korean high-speed trains may run through the United Arab Emirates and Azerbaijan, the Ministry of Construction and Transportation said on Monday.

"The United Arab Emirates and Azerbaijan expressed strong wills to adopt the Korean high-speed railway system during President Roh Moo-hyun's recent visit to those countries," the ministry said in a statement.
http://img419.imageshack.us/img419/9639/koreatrain89qc.jpg
According to The Korea Herald, the ministry therefore plans to dispatch a task force jointly organized by the Korea Railroad Research Institute and the Korea Rail Network Authority to prepare for building railroads in the two nations.
http://img341.imageshack.us/img341/4290/koreatrain24yr.jpg
The UAE plans to invest $3 billion in setting up a 130-kilometer high-speed railway connecting the airports in the capital Abu Dhabi and the city of Dubai.
http://img341.imageshack.us/img341/8315/koreatrain45tb.jpg
Azerbaijan also plans to spend $20 billion in building a 503-kilometer high-speed railroad from the capital Baku to the neighboring country Georgia. High-speed trains developed by the KRRI are currently under test operation at home and are to be in use by October next year. The railway will connect the capital with the country's southwest.
http://img341.imageshack.us/img341/9650/koreatrain66au.jpghttp://img429.imageshack.us/img429/6290/koreatrain77lk.jpg
The Transportation Ministry also plans to enter the railroad markets of China and Brazil, and to form a council of government and industry experts to support the overseas sales.
http://img341.imageshack.us/img341/2096/koreatrain109ik.th.jpg (http://img341.imageshack.us/my.php?image=koreatrain109ik.jpg)

[malec]

At the moment there's no rail of any kind in the UAE

[Slugbelch]

At the moment no. But as the article says, when there is $3b to invest, there will be.

[nomarandlee]

130-kilometer high doesn't seem all that high speed. I am surprised that the UAE doesn't try to institute Maglev or real fast rail.

[Pandemonious]

That is the length of the track, I think, not the speed of the train.

[Australiasian]

is there going to be enough passengers for the highspeed trains?

[Slugbelch]

Maybe, but they do need some quick link between the capital and Dubai.

^The light rail will help bring this into reality:
http://img127.imageshack.us/img127/7273/dubairailmay2063lx.jpg
http://img186.imageshack.us/img186/1365/lightraildubai4uf.jpg
(Courtesy ATM on flkr)

[Australiasian]

^
but the population of UAE is only around 2.5million (plus the expats and tourists and others, say 5million) i really dont think a highspeed rail line connecting UAE's captial and its financial centre is the best way to do it, i doubt they can ever recoup the investment. i believe planes would serve the purpose more economically. but then again, money doesnt seem like an issue in UAE anyway.

[malec]

Sharjah-Dubai is more important I think because there are loads of people commuting who live in Sharjah because it's cheaper.

[malec]

Also, there will need to be another metro line servicing new high-density projects on the creek.

[twoNeurons]

ISn't UAE Rich? DOes it MATTER if they recoup costs? They have the Al Burj ARab hotel there, for goodness sakes.

[malec]

Of course it does. Money no matter how much doesn't last forever and sooner or later the stash built up from oil will be gone.

BTW, I don't think they can spend enough on the metro. The more extensive it is, the better it'll be for everyone.
It'll be really important to educate everyone to use it though because right now, loads of people would prefer to be stuck in traffic (but in their ferrari) rather than be seen in the metro. The guys running the thing have emphasized this though.

They WILL recoup their costs though, it'd make the city far less car-dependent

[canucklehead2]

I think it would be viable in the UAE since its fast becoming the cultural and financial hub of the middle east, and the state can only grow from where it is now. Azerbaijan though....

[Slugbelch]

http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/4436/02nationmetro45tr.jpg
Dubai Metro rail begins work (http://archive.gulfnews.com/articles/06/07/02/10050775.html)
July 02
Dubai

The first pier for the Dubai Metro rail has been installed on Sheikh Zayed Road between the sixth and seventh interchanges.

According to the Gulf News, its construction represents an important event for the project since it is the first structure, which can be seen by residents and drivers on Sheikh Zayed Road.

The pier has a diameter of 1.75 m and a height of seven metres. A total of 1,205 piers will be erected along the metro's Red Line by mid-2007.

The piling work for pillars is expected to be performed at a rate of one pile per rig per day.

----------------------------

Int'l firms will maintain and operate Dubai Metro (http://www.menafn.com/qn_news_story_s.asp?StoryId=1093119047)
Khaleej Times - July 05

DUBAI — The Dh15.5 billion ($4.2 billion) Dubai Metro will be maintained and operated by international firms through a joint venture agreement with the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA). "We have gone to the marketplace and invited well-known international firms to bid for this work.


The RTA will make a public announcement in due course as the tender evaluation is presently under review," an RTA official told Khaleej Times.

The projected cash flow for the Dubai Metro is also described as "healthy." Specific details of the financing arrangements were sketchy, but will be "funded through various mechanisms including, but not limited to, metro stations sponsorship schemes." The official said: "We have received numerous approaches by private developers wanting to sponsor some of our stations because they realise the strategic importance of our railway stations to their businesses."

There will be 42 stations and, according to published reports, at least 15 of them look likely to be financed through sponsorship schemes.

The RTA commercial and investment department is also working with international consultants to develop Dubai Metro Land plots, the official said.

Late last year a representative of the Dubai Municipality denied reports that money had been borrowed to finance the project and said it was completely government financed.

However, many similar projects internationally are funded using project financing. This means that repayment is based on the future cash flows of the project.

Dubai Metro is also described "not as a nice-to-have project" but as a "need-justified" one. Although there have been no studies of what it would cost Dubai not to have a metro, such a study was considered unnecessary "as the prima-facie of traffic gridlocks and traffic pollution is staring everyone in the eye." Dubai is already plagued by traffic jobs especially at peak hours resulting in lost business hours and traffic pollution.

"The modernity of Dubai as an international city is also tied up with the implementation of Dubai Metro," said the official.

The Dubai Metro will be built in three phases. The first phase, known as the Red Line, will be completed by September 2009. A milestone in the construction of this line is said to be the construction of the first pier for the elevated route near Jebel Ali village at Shaikh Zayed Road, which is planned for June 29, 2009.

The RTA official also said that the RTA is planning to start phase two of the project, known as the Green Line, early, and that a contract announcement would be made shortly.

The RTA is also planning a railway network throughout Dubai to connect the major business centres and minimise the impact of traffic congestion. Final details will not be made available until the planning studies are completed, the official said. The aim is to provide a fully integrated transport system.

In line with this there are also plans to have a common ticketing system so that the ticket is transferable and can be used on any mode of transport.

It is being benchmarked against other international cities such as London, Singapore and Paris.

[bobdreamz]

Dubai Metro is also described "not as a nice-to-have project" but as a "need-justified" one. Although there have been no studies of what it would cost Dubai not to have a metro, such a study was considered unnecessary "as the prima-facie of traffic gridlocks and traffic pollution is staring everyone in the eye."

love this quote....if only we in the US could do the same!

[Lecom]

Awesome. I just hope that this elevated train won't block views of SZR.

It would be real cool if they expand this system into the other development areas like the Marina, BD area and the Palm Islands etc.

[Slugbelch]

9,000 men for Metro
AMEinfo (http://www.ameinfo.com/91026.html)
Jul 9, 2006

9,000 men are working on the construction of Dubai's Metro system, reported Gulf News. At the current time, work is focusing on the diaphragm walls for the underground stations and then, from November, tunnelling work and viaduct construction will commence. A project official said that the design team for the Metro system included experts who had helped shape the interior for the Burj Al Arab and Dubai International Airport.

[horatio_the_hermit]

This is like a real version of sim city.

[Slugbelch]

Mitsubishi wins Dubai Metro deal (http://dubaiphotomedia.com/dubai/doc_cont.asp?id=94345)
Thursday, July 27, 2006

DUBAI: An international consortium led by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd has won an order worth $88 million from the Dubai government for phase II construction work on the Dubai Metro,.

The new contract is stipulated in phase I as an option between the consortium, Dubai Rapid Link (DURL), and the Dubai government in July 2005. Phase II is scheduled to start as early as this month, with services due to begin in March 2010, according to Forbes magazine.

The other members of the DURL consortium include three Japanese companies - Mitsubishi Corp, Obayashi Corp and Kajima Corp - along with Turkey's Yapi Merkezi Insaat ve Sanayi AS.

[Slugbelch]

http://img413.imageshack.us/img413/6882/dmel1.jpg (http://www.middleeastelectricity.com/upl_images/news/DUBAI%20METRO%20%E2%80%93%20THE%20LONGEST%20DRIVERLESS%20METRO%20IN%20THE%20WORLD.pdf#search=%22%20%22dubai%20metro%22%20filetype%3Apdf%22)

[Lecom]

That's nice, but I rarely trust driverless metros... there needs to be some human factor in the machine. What if someone is stuck? What if there is an unforseen scenario? Dubai is building all these multibillion projects, and it's trying to save money on not hiring a subway driver for five bucks an hour?

Great project nevertheless. Dubai continues to kick ass.

[Grumpy]

130-kilometer high doesn't seem all that high speed. I am surprised that the UAE doesn't try to institute Maglev or real fast rail.

For a country that lives already a century ahead there should be a magnet train not one on wheels

[zilfondel]

[I]This is like a real version of sim city.

Too bad we aren't the ones playing - it reminds me of watching your friend playing Simcity.

Of course, I'd just start a bunch of disasters: flood, hurricane, tornado, UFOs, and a few riots - just for fun. =)

[Slugbelch]

Metro rail link for visitors to Burj Dubai (http://www.gulfnews.com/nation/Traffic_and_Transport/10070341.html)
Gulf news: 09/27/2006 12:00 AM


Dubai: Emaar will finance a Metro station near the Burj Dubai, which will be the world's tallest building on completion.

"It is the first public-private sector agreement for the Dubai Metro project and many more will follow," said Mattar Al Tayer, Chairman of the Board and Executive Director of the Dubai Roads and Transport Authority (RTA).

Emaar will spend Dh100 million on the construction of the station, which will be designed and constructed by RTA.

A corridor will link the station at Shaikh Zayed Road with Burj Dubai and its surrounding areas.

Al Tayer said the RTA recently signed an agreement with the Department of Civil Aviation for the construction of two stations in front of Terminals 1 and 3 of Dubai International Airport.

"[The] agreement comes in line with the RTA's policy to involve private sector in the RTA's projects," Al Tayer said. He said the station would serve the Burj Dubai community, including the largest shopping centre in the world.

Ahmad Thani Al Matroushi, Managing Director of Emaar, said: "We will provide all possible support to RTA in implementing its project to meet the transportation needs of Dubai."

[malec]

Recent articles tell us that 320km or metro line are planned for 2020, and that's not including the various monorails and trams on the palms and various other projects :yes:


A map by me, the 4 coloured lines for the metro are shown, the yellow are palm monorails (only the palm jumeirah one is under construction but the others will definitely have something similar), the black is a tram line.

http://img114.imageshack.us/img114/5117/masterplannowca6.th.jpg (http://img114.imageshack.us/my.php?image=masterplannowca6.jpg)


Some images:

http://www.gulfnews.com/images/06/10/05/06_ae_dubai_metro01_5.jpg

http://www.gulfnews.com/images/06/10/05/06_ae_dubai_metro02_5.jpg

http://www.gulfnews.com/images/06/10/05/06_ae_dubai_metro03_5.jpg

http://www.gulfnews.com/images/06/10/05/06_ae_dubai_metro04_5.jpg

http://www.gulfnews.com/images/06/10/05/06_ae_dubai_metro05_5.jpg

http://www.gulfnews.com/images/06/10/05/06_ae_dubai_metro06_5.jpg

http://www.gulfnews.com/images/06/10/05/06_ae_dubai_metro07_5.jpg

http://www.gulfnews.com/images/06/10/05/06_ae_dubai_metro08_5.jpg

http://www.gulfnews.com/images/06/10/05/06_ae_dubai_metro09_5.jpg

http://www.gulfnews.com/images/06/10/05/06_ae_dubai_metro10_5.jpg



Some recent articles:

Dubai expands metro network with Purple Line

Dubai: The Dubai government has decided to expand the city's metro network by adding a fourth line that will serve new communities along Al Khail Road.

The Purple Line - an express line between Dubai International Airport and Jebel Ali Airport - will open by 2012 and will be in addition to the Blue Line that will run on Emirates Road and also connect the airports.

Both lines will be linked to the Red and Green lines currently under construction. "There will be a complete network of metro services ... there are plans to add more lines in future," said Abdul Majid Khaja, CEO of Dubai Metro at the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA).

The RTA will also extend tram services from Al Sufouh Road to Jumeirah Road and it will be linked to metro stations on Shaikh Zayed Road.

The total length of the Dubai metro system is estimated to be 318km by 2020, including 69.7km of the Red and Green lines. "We are expanding because we want people to leave their cars and use the metro once it is ready," said Al Khaja.

Purple Line to link airports

Dubai: Some 96 kilometres will be added to the Dubai Metro network, with the addition of Purple and Blue railway lines.

The total length of the Red and the Green Lines, part of the earlier plan, is 69.7km.

The Road and Transport Authority has announced the construction of 49km long Purple Line and an approximately 47km long Blue Line.

According to the RTA, Dubai will have a total of 318km of metro lines by 2020 as some more tracks will be added gradually with the development of the city.

The 49km-long Purple Line will be an express track and it will link Dubai International Airport with Jebel Ali Airport. It will have only eight stations and will be operational by 2012 - two years after the completion of the Red and the Green Lines.

Abdul Majeed Khaja, Chief Executive Officer of Dubai Metro at the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), the Blue Line will run on Emirates Road while the Purple Line will be constructed on Al Khail Road and serve new communities coming up along this road.

Change in plan

"Although the Blue Line was planned earlier, we have decided to construct the Purple Line first because more development is coming up on Al Khail Road," Al Khaja told journalists at an informal meeting held on Wednesday.

The meeting was attended by senior officials of Dubai Metro team, including Adnan Al Hammadi, Director of Construction; Abdul Redha Abuhassan, Director of Planning and Design; Abdul Rauf Al Sayed Mohammad, Operations Engineer; Ali Abdul Qader, Director of Maintenance Department and Mohammad Eisa Al Rowaished, Rail Design Manager.

Al Khaja said the metro work was going at a fast pace. "We have completed 25 per cent of work on the Red Line."

He said 52.1km Red Line from Dubai-Abu Dhabi borders to Rashidiya will now have 29 stations as one more station has been added for the Mall of Emirates.

"We are on schedule and will complete the project within the given time," said Al Khaja.

Green Line work to start soon

Dubai: The Dubai Roads and Transport Authority has awarded contract for the Green Line and the construction will start soon.

The Green Line - which is 17.6km-long - will have 14 station and will be operational in March 2010. It will have 7.6km underground track and 10km of elevated track. "The Dh5.7 billion Green Line contract has been awarded to the contractor who is building the Red Line," said Adnan Al Hammadi, Director of Construction of the Dubai Metro at the RTA. The contractor for the Dubai Metro is Dubai Rapid Link (DURL) consortium headed by Mitsubishi Corp of Japan.

"The construction on the Green Line will put more constrain on the authority and the residents as it will be carried out in the busy Central Business Districts of Deira and Bur Dubai," said Al Hammadi.

He said the major construction activity will start in January next year with the start of the tunnelling work. The tunnel boring machine will arrive in November and the tunnelling will start in January from Union Square station to Burjuman Centre Station.

Nakheel and RTA meet on linking Metro to projects

High-level officials from Dubai World’s Nakheel Properties and the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) have met to study proposals to link the Metro system to feeder systems serving some of Nakheel’s developments.

The teams discussed several plans like linking Palm Jumeirah’s monorail system to the Metro and the tramway planned for Al Sufouh Road, a major thoroughfare; connecting the network to Jumeirah Lake Towers and Ibn Battuta Mall; and linking Palm Deira to Metro services.

The two sides said that connecting Palm Jumeirah’s monorail to the Metro network and the tramways of Al Sufouh Road will require constructing the two stations as close to each other as possible in order to ensure convenience.

They also said that it is essential for the stations to meet the needs of the Jumeirah Lake Towers project.

The meeting was one of the highest level of contacts between Dubai World and the Roads and Transport Authority aimed at co-ordinating the mass transport requirements of Nakheel’s iconic Palm Island projects.

Adnan Al Naqi, the Managing Director of Palm Deira and General Executive Co-ordinator of Dubai World, said: “The talks are intended to secure the highest level of co-ordination and to enhance the principles of true strategic partnership adopted by Dubai World in its relations with different government authorities.”


Some construction pics:

http://www.gulf4cars.com/vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=2260&d=1156701620

http://www.gulf4cars.com/vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=2264&d=1156701620

http://www.gulf4cars.com/vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=2274&d=1156702113

http://xs306.xs.to/xs306/06365/3f3.jpg

http://xs306.xs.to/xs306/06365/7f7.jpg

[Slugbelch]

This past weekend:
http://img179.imageshack.us/img179/4711/dm111106bmfu9.jpg.http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/8048/dm1111062bmav2.jpg
http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/9367/dm1111064bmsv8.jpg.http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/4715/dm1111063bmnz0.jpg

[Sky Tower]

Al Tayer visits the progress of work in Dubai Metro stations in the Emirates Mall, Burj Al Arab and Burj Dubai

HE Mattar Al Tayer, Chairman of the Board and Executive Director of Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), conducted a field tour to a number of work sites in Dubai Metro project, which included a visit to the site of a concrete pillar in Jebel Ali and Metro stations in the Emirates Mall, Burj Al-Arab and Burj Dubai.


United Arab Emirates: Wednesday, December 27 - 2006 at 10:10
PRESS RELEASE (http://media.ameinfo.com/interstitials/ad.html?oldURL=http://www.ameinfo.com/submitpress/&timer=60000)


Al Tayer was accompanied during this visit, which lasted nearly five hours, by Abdul Majid Al Khaja, CEO of the Rail Agency, Engineer Adnan Al-Hamadi, Director of Rail Construction Department, Engineer Abdul Redha Abulhasan, Director of Rail Planning and Design Department, Engineer Ali Abdul Qader, Director of the Maintenance Department, as well as number of officials from the Executive Consultant Office supervising the project.

Al Tayer started his tour with a visit to the construction of the pillars of concrete on the 6th and 7th intersections on Sheikh Zayed road, which is located on an area of more than 539,000 square meters. The site has been equipped and the main equipment has been installed in ten months, which included two workshops for the production of upper bridges to the Metro and upper columns and stereotypes. He was told about the work being done at the site, which includes the establishment of below beams (pillars) with a diameter of 2,2 meters and a depth ranging from 25 to 30 meters.

Al Tayer also visited the construction work of "Jumairah Islands launching Girder" which is a used to lift and collect and put all upper pieces (Bridges) for the Metro and installed over the columns prepared in advance. The length of the equipment is 109 meters long and 13 meters in width, and 15 meters height.

He also visited the Burj Al Arab station which will start core business in January 2007, after the completion of the converting work 80% of electricity, water and irrigation services. The capacity of the station is about 11,000 passengers per hour in each direction, including two elevated entrances and electrical elevators and has a total length of approximately 130 meters and 30 meters of width.

H.E Chairman of the Board and Executive Director of RTA also visited the construction sites of Emirates Mall station which are considered the latest addition of the Red Line, and will be the upper station lifted from Earth and on the grade level of the bridge.

Al Tayer ended his exploratory tour with a visit to the Burj Dubai station, which will be lifted from the ground level of the bridge, with a total length of approximately 132 meters, and approximately 29 meters of width, and has a capacity of 11,000 passengers per hour in each direction for the station, including the two elevated entrances and electrical elevators.

He listened also to a presentation on the progress of work on the conversion of services, which began in the middle of this month and will be completed within the next three months.

He praised the efforts of employees who work hard and requested the execution company to make more effort to finish the project on time, stressing that the Dubai Metro will be a distinct feature and adds to the series of integrated projects in the emirate on various levels.

[Slugbelch]

http://img292.imageshack.us/img292/5171/dm010107pr8.jpg

Dubai Metro Overview by Abdulmajid Al-Khaja, CEO of Rail and Transit Authority:
http://www.euromedtransport.org/fileadmin/download/maincontract/Meed2006/meed2006_day1_alkhaja.pdf

End of Nov. 2006 presentation:
http://www.euromedtransport.org/fileadmin/download/maincontract/Meed2006/meed2006_day1_chuniaud_monta.pdf

http://img292.imageshack.us/img292/6048/dmmapoa0.jpg

[Slugbelch]

Feb. 4:
http://img148.imageshack.us/img148/5290/dmetro020407etkb6.jpg

[Slugbelch]

http://img77.imageshack.us/img77/5558/dmetro011107miketheredbqw1.jpg

[Slugbelch]

Feb. 14:
http://img265.imageshack.us/img265/8490/dm021407lovelyheartne3.jpg

[AltinD]

http://img77.imageshack.us/img77/5558/dmetro011107miketheredbqw1.jpg

This is The Palm Jumeirah monorail.

[AltinD]

BTW, alot of the underground tunels will be build using the cut-and-cover technique. Boring will be used only where the first method isn't possible, such when it passes under the Dubai Creek or when the tracks pass under a very dense aerea with no wide enough roads, to cut to.

However still the majority of the route will be on elevated tracks.

[Nicodemo]

Oh my God!!!

Dubai with fast trains.....super modern!!!

[wadiman]

http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/2/13/769121/28_ae_dubai_metro_4.jpg

From Gulf News

"Machine bores through as Metro tunnel work starts

Dubai: Al Bugeisha, the Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) for the Dubai Metro, has begun tunnelling work for the underground rail tracks, said a senior official.

The TBM has been named Al Bugeisha after the small desert rodent found in Asia and North Africa and is known by that name in the UAE for its characteristics of burrowing.

Breakthrough

"The success of the TBM in breaking through the wall is a significant achievement and is a major part of construction for the underground part of the Dubai Metro project," said Adnan Al Hammadi, Director of Construction at Dubai Metro.

He said it is one of the most critical stages during construction of the tunnel. The tailor-made TBM has been assembled in Japan especially for Dubai's Metro.

"The machine has been manufactured to bore through hard rocks or sand layers and almost anything in between," said Al Hammadi.

"Al Bugeisha has successfully broken through the tunnel for the underground part of the Red Line for the Metro from Union Square in Deira towards Burjuman Centre - the two major underground stations where the Red and Green Lines will cross each other," said Al Hammadi.

The machine will also pass under the Dubai Creek for tunnelling work. The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has already completed the survey and determined the route of the work. "The tunnel will pass under the creek up to a length of 1.6 km and at a maximum depth of 30 metres. He said the residents will not feel any impact of tunnelling work because there will hardly be any vibration," he added.

Minimum disturbance

Al Bugeisha has a diameter of 9.56 metres, is 82 metres long and weighs 1,000 tonnes.

TBM's are used as an alternative to drilling and blasting methods and have the advantage of minimum disturbance to the soil by producing a smooth tunnel wall. "This significantly reduces the cost of lining the tunnel," Al Hammadi said.

The second TBM shaft at Union Square is also complete. It will be used to tunnel from Union Square to Al Rigga and from there to City Centre.

The Dh15.5 billion Dubai Metro project has a Red and Green line with a total length of 69.7km. There will be a total of 12.3km of underground metro line."

[MolsonExport]

Being Dubai, I would have expected them to build maglev at least to the moon, or the oort cloud.

[Derek]

excellent addition to a fast growing city :tup:

[genghiskhan]

That's nice, but I rarely trust driverless metros... there needs to be some human factor in the machine. What if someone is stuck? What if there is an unforseen scenario? Dubai is building all these multibillion projects, and it's trying to save money on not hiring a subway driver for five bucks an hour?

Great project nevertheless. Dubai continues to kick ass.

Have you ever been on a driverless metro? SkyTrain in the Vancouver, Canada region has been running quickly, safely and efficiently since 1986, and has been massively expanded since (a new third line is being added south to the airport in time for the 2010 Olympics).

The system uses a train system built by Bombardier. In fact, the new Mark II cars and the stations and track construction of the recently completed second (Millenium) line and under-construction third line look very similar to those of the Dubai metro system, from what I can see from these pictures.

It's also the same technology in use in Kuala Lumpur, the Toronto suburb of Scarborough, and the JFK AirTrain in NYC.

http://www.translink.bc.ca/Transportation_Services/SkyTrain/
http://www.skytrain.info/

[Imperar]

Being Dubai, I would have expected them to build maglev at least to the moon, or the oort cloud.

It's funny isn't it, I would've expected exactly the same.

I'm sure that they will eventually build a transrapid maglev system that will connect all of the UAE's emirates/cities together in due course.

Perhaps they aren't aware of the technology yet, or they are waiting until Japan perfects the technology to make it financially feasible, and will might as well buy it of them later.

I here those Japanese maglevs have found a way to travel at around 800km/h?

and...and I wounder where Al Maktoum is at... I bet he plays too much SimCity 4 in his spare time LOL :rolleyes:
SC4 don't have maglevs :(

[bobdreamz]

it's almost sickening to watch how fast they are building their metro while it takes years in the US to even get funding here!

[Slugbelch]

Metro yesterday:

http://aycu40.webshots.com/image/21999/2006037834980781229_rs.jpg http://aycu13.webshots.com/image/24532/2006098606910234239_rs.jpg

http://aycu28.webshots.com/image/23667/2006025550460348880_rs.jpg

http://aycu03.webshots.com/image/22482/2006008397068529256_rs.jpg
vuva/smallcap

Original:
http://aycu03.webshots.com/image/22482/200607068529256_rs.jpg (http://allyoucanupload.webshots.com/v/200607068529256)

[IMBY]

it's almost sickening to watch how fast they are building their metro while it takes years in the US to even get funding here!

And here in Las Vegas we have the powerful taxi unions who wouldn't even allow the Monorail to go to the Airport, it comes to a screeching halt at MGM!

And they'd never allow even a light rail line between our downtown Fremont district, down the Strip, to the Airport!

When we eliminated the Mob, a few decades ago, why did they allow one Mob element to remain here!!!:(