On May 3, 2026, the Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum of Dubai, officially announced the start of tunnel construction for the Dubai Metro Blue Line project. RTA officially named the TBM project "Al Wugeisha". The tunnel construction this time starts from International City Station 1 and is progressing synchronously in three directions. The first tunneling machine is heading towards Mirdif, the second is heading towards the automotive market, and the third is operating on the Valsang section. The total length of the tunnel boring machine is 163 meters, with a total weight of over 2000 tons. It can achieve uninterrupted construction around the clock, and the daily excavation progress can reach 13 to 17 meters. The equipment is equipped with a high-precision digital guidance system, an intelligent precision monitoring system, and an integrated slag transportation and logistics system, leading the industry in intelligence and construction accuracy.

The overall construction progress of the Dubai Metro Blue Line project has been completed by 20%, with over 10000 construction personnel and more than 500 engineers and professional technicians involved in the construction on site. According to relevant departments, the overall progress of the project is expected to advance to 30% by the end of 2026, and it is planned to officially open for operation on September 9, 2029. The total investment of the project is about 5.6 billion US dollars, with a total length of 30 kilometers, including 15.5 kilometers of underground tunnels and 14.5 kilometers of elevated sections. The entire line is planned to have 14 stations, including 3 transfer stations, 7 elevated stations, and 4 underground stations. Keywords: Dubai, CRRC China, Blue Line Engineering

The general contracting project for the design and construction of the Dubai Metro Blue Line was finalized in December 2024. The consortium consisting of CRRC, Mapa and Limak of Türkiye won the bid to undertake the construction. At the same time, the joint venture of AtkinsRealis and Parsons Corporation acted as the PMC unit to ensure the whole process of project construction.Editor/Gong Ziwei