Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, has approved the New Fourth Corridor, an 80km road project designed to strengthen Dubai's connectivity with neighbouring emirates and the wider federal road network.
The corridor will run from Al Faya Road in Abu Dhabi to Al Shanouf Road in Sharjah, becoming the fourth strategic corridor linking the UAE's emirates, following Sheikh Zayed/Al Ittihad Road, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Road and Emirates Road.
What the project involves
The route passes through Al Maktoum International Airport, the Al Marmoom Desert Conservation Reserve, the Al Wohoosh Desert Conservation Reserve and the Etihad Rail route. Construction will include 72 bridges, 17 tunnels and 45 stormwater drainage culverts across the full length of the corridor.
The project will be delivered in two phases.
Phase 1 covers roughly 30km, running from Al Shanouf Road in Sharjah to Dubai–Al Ain Road, at a cost of around AED3.5 billion. It will be built as a 12-lane corridor capable of carrying up to 24,000 vehicles per hour in both directions, serving an estimated 600,000 people. This phase includes about 55 lane-kilometres of at-grade roads, 2.5km of tunnels and 21km of bridges and ramps, and is expected to cut journey time from 35 minutes to 14 minutes, a 60 percent reduction. It also involves widening Dubai–Al Ain Road from three to four lanes in each direction between Emirates Road and Lehbab Road, along with upgrades to four major intersections.
