Abu Dhabi carries out strategic projects to enhance traffic flow

The Department of Municipalities and Transport (DMT) represented by Abu Dhabi City Municipality, has completed a series of development and expansion projects for numerous roads within the city as well as major roads, tunnels, and bridges leading to and from Abu Dhabi.

This came as part of DMT’s ongoing commitment to ensuring smooth traffic flow throughout the year, particularly at the beginning of a season packed with major events including the start of a new school year and the dozens of major conferences and events to be hosted over the coming weeks and months.

The DMT continues to carry out strategic projects as part of its comprehensive long-term development plan with a budget exceeding Dhs75 billion. This comes in line with the global standing achieved by the emirate, which is ranked as the most livable city in the Middle East and North Africa region, one of the safest cities in the world and one of the top ten smart cities worldwide.

Racing against time

The projects already carried out and those to be has implemented and those to be completed in the coming period focus on developing infrastructure and enhancing the quality of services provided to citizens and residents because investing in infrastructure is an investment in the future.

The municipality is nowadays racing against time to complete many expansions and rehabilitate several streets including Sheikh Zayed Street, Saeed Bin Ahmed Al Otaiba Street and Abdul Rahman Makhlouf Street, as well as intersections on Al Falah Street and a number of branch streets.

The Mina Zayed Tunnel is set to continue improving traffic and driving urban development, contributing to the emirate’s development.

This came in preparation for the new school year and the capital hosting of several events, most importantly Abu Dhabi International Hunting and Equestrian Exhibition 2025 at the end of this month.

The municipality completed maintenance and rehabilitation work on Sheikh Zayed tunnel, a vital artery that contributed to smoothening traffic flow.

Maintenance work in 145 areas surrounding schools

In preparation for the back-to-school season and in a bid to ensure the safety and comfort of students, the municipality carried out maintenance work in 145 areas surrounding schools as part of an integrated maintenance plan to provide a safe and prepared environment for the new academic year. Teams are working round the clock to ensure the readiness of educational facilities to welcome students in a safe and comfortable environment.

The municipality explained that these efforts came as part of its commitment to ensuring that the return to school in the capital Abu Dhabi is more than just the beginning of a new academic year, but rather a positive and safe experience that would contribute to the comfort and safety of students.

The work included carrying out the necessary maintenance of asphalt roads and parking areas, replacing the tiles of pedestrian crossings, handling landslides on roads near schools and others leading to them, providing additional parking spaces for parents and visitors and maintaining and reinstalling road signs, road markings, and curbstones.

Transport network projects

The DMT previously completed several transportation network projects across the emirate with investments totaling Dhs3.4 billion. These projects contributed to smoothening traffic flow, ensuring speedy access to destinations and reducing travel time during morning rush hours by 80% on some vital roads.

These projects included the Helio-Abu Al Abyad Road in Al Dhafra Region, the opening of two bridges at the intersection of Al Khaleej Al Arabi Street with Shakhbout Bin Sultan Street in Abu Dhabi at a cost of Dhs315 million and adding 247 km of new bicycle lanes, bringing their total length to more than 1,200 km.

The work included carrying out the necessary maintenance of asphalt roads and parking areas, replacing the tiles of pedestrian crossings.

Since it was opened in 2023, Mina Zayed Tunnel has delivered tangible benefits to road users and the environment, according to a study conducted by the DMT on its impact on traffic in Abu Dhabi.

The study concluded that the journey time was reduced by 40 per cent and traffic accidents fell by 23 per cent, thanks to improved road efficiency. In addition, traffic on the Sheikh Khalifa Bridge, which is directly connected to the tunnel, also increased by 26.7 per cent.

The Mina Zayed Tunnel is set to continue improving traffic and driving urban development, contributing to the emirate’s development. It is expected to save approximately 34 million hours of travel time by 2050, resulting in significant additional benefits, including approximately Dhs130 million in entertainment spending and Dhs1.36 billion in wages.

Environmentally, the tunnel’s ability to ease vehicle movement is expected to avoid the release of approximately 65,000 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions by 2050, equivalent to planting three million trees.

Air quality in the surrounding areas also improved, with air pollutant concentrations dropping by up to 37 per cent following reduced congestion and improved ventilation systems inside the tunnel.

From an economic perspective, the Mina Zayed Tunnel already began to generate tangible returns on the ground and the project is expected to contribute Dhs1.66 billion to Abu Dhabi's gross domestic product, driven by construction activity and long-term productivity gains from more efficient transportation.

Many companies reported positive impacts from the tunnel, with enhanced access to vital areas, fostering business growth and stimulating commercial activity.

New bridges

During 2025, Abu Dhabi witnessed a series of road and bridge development projects carried out by the DMT with the aim of enhancing traffic flow and reducing congestion on key roads. This will contribute to supporting economic activity and easing movement among all regions of the emirate.

During the current year 2025, the DMT opened two new bridges on Al Khaleej Al Arabi Street and Shakhbout Bin Sultan Street heading towards Musaffah as part of a strategic project aimed to reduce congestion by up to 80 per cent during morning peak hours and achieve a capacity of up to 7,500 vehicles per hour.

The Dhs315-million project included a three-lane bridge over the intersection of Al Khaleej Al Arabi Street with Shakhbout Bin Sultan Street and another two-lane bridge connecting Shakhbout Street to Al Khaleej Al Arabi Street. The project also included sidewalks, walking and bicycle paths, tree-lined areas and improvements to the side service lanes.

By the end of May, the Integrated Transport Centre (ITC), part of DMT, activated traffic lights on Al Manhal Street in Mohamed Bin Zayed City, Abu Dhabi, and in Madinat Al Riyadh to ease traffic flow.

Traffic lights for pedestrians

As part of the efforts exerted by the Joint Traffic Safety Committee to enhance traffic flow in Abu Dhabi, the ITC has installed pedestrian traffic lights at the exits of some intersections to better regulate pedestrian crossings and improve overall traffic flow.

The authorities concerned in the capital began addressing a challenge facing drivers at pedestrian crossings at traffic intersections by installing and operating traffic lights on several sidewalks at pedestrian crossings across Abu Dhabi. This step would ease the movement of motorists, regulate pedestrian crossings and reduce congestion, especially during peak hours when employees are leaving work.

Meanwhile, Al Dhafra Region Municipality implemented road development and maintenance works in the region’s cities. During the first half of this year, it completed maintenance of internal roads and highways with a length of 8,600 metres, including Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Highway and Sheikha Salama Bint Butti Street.