Milestone project

MANAMA: The King Hamad Causeway project is currently in the phase of drawing up the executive strategic plan and financial models,” said Transportation and Telecommunications Minister Kamal Ahmed.

“Workshops will be held soon on structuring the partnership before presenting the initial draft of the executive strategy to competent authorities in both countries and submitting the blueprint to the Higher Supervisory Committee to obtain necessary approvals, which would open the door to commission a consultant to move to the next stage,” he told the ministerial committee for development and infrastructure projects during a meeting chaired by Deputy Premier Shaikh Khalid bin Abdulla Al Khalifa yesterday.

An approved feasibility study showed that King Hamad Causeway will improve and raise the efficiency of transport operations between the two countries.

The milestone project consists of four lanes in each direction with a length of 25km, and a two-track railway with a length of 57km, including 7km within Bahrain.

The study also showed that the implementation of the project in partnership with the private sector will ensure the provision of the necessary financial resources to design, build, finance, operate and maintain the vehicle track and the railway track.

Developments

The panel was updated on developments of the massive 1,860km-long Gulf railway network.

So far, the project’s manual has been completed in co-ordination with the GCC general secretariat. A study has also been conducted on the estimated volume and movement of passengers and goods.

“The outcome of the study will be used to draw up the operational plan,” said Mr Ahmed, pointing out that a proposal to establish the Gulf Railways Authority will be on the agenda of the next GCC Summit.

He said that the consultancy services for the planned Bahrain Metro project feature in the GAP (2019-2022), which allocated to this end BD1.7 million from the state general budget.

He stressed the importance of the 109km project which, he said, will contribute to easing traffic congestion, with a capacity of 43,000 passengers per hour.

The ministry has demarcated the route of the metro in its 28.6km first phase, with two lines featuring 20 stations between Bahrain International Airport and Seef District, and Juffair and Isa Town Educational Zone.

As for the route of the first phase (A), it includes the Seef District line–King Hamad International Station in Ramli, with a length of about 8km, and four stations.

Bids will be received on June 24 for a tender to commission a consulting firm to study the infrastructure lines overlapping with the metro track, whose scope of work includes planning and designing diversions for ground services incompatible with the route, and defining new tracks for those transferred services in co-ordination with relevant ministries and government agencies.

The ministry is currently evaluating 11 bids which were submitted on June 2, for tender to appoint a consulting company to study the feasibility and make the initial designs to extend the line of the first phase of the metro project, that connects the King Hamad International Passenger Terminal in Ramli with the Sports City and the new Bahrain International Exhibition and Convention Centre, being constructed in Sakhir.

Mr Ahmed said that the tender will be likely awarded to a qualified consultant for work to start during the third quarter of this year.

“The aim is to study the different options for the path, the volume of current and future demand and determine the locations of the stations, and the initial cost of the project,” he said.

Source: https://www.gdnonline.com/Details/948194/Milestone-project