More than 20 metres beneath the streets near Dragon Mart, one of the largest stations on Dubai’s forthcoming Metro Blue Line is beginning to take visible shape, marking a significant step forward in one of the emirate’s most ambitious transport infrastructure projects in years.
A tunnel boring machine has now completed its first 1.2-kilometre underground journey to reach the station site, with concrete walls already constructed and construction crews working across multiple levels of the site. During a recent media visit, officials showed off the progress, offering an early look inside the underground station well before it is due to open to passengers.
A project advancing on schedule
The milestone reflects steady progress on a project that Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority has consistently described as advancing on schedule since its June 2025 groundbreaking. Mattar Al Tayer, the RTA’s Director General and Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors, has confirmed that construction reached 10 per cent completion within the first five months, with the authority targeting 30 per cent completion by the end of 2026.
More than 500 engineers and experts, alongside roughly 3,000 workers, are currently deployed across a dozen construction sites to keep the Dh20.5 billion project on pace. According to the RTA, more than 260 deep foundations have already been completed across multiple locations, alongside excavation works exceeding 400,000 cubic metres at station sites in the International City area.
A line designed to reshape daily commutes
Spanning 30 kilometres and comprising 14 stations, the Blue Line is designed to connect Dubai’s existing Red and Green Lines, linking key residential, academic, economic and tourism districts across the emirate. Once operational, the line is expected to serve neighbourhoods projected to house around one million residents by 2040, while offering a direct 20-minute journey to Dubai International Airport.
The Dragon Mart station, located in one of Dubai’s busiest retail and residential corridors, is expected to be among the line’s most heavily used stops given the area’s dense population and constant flow of shoppers and residents. Its progress therefore carries particular significance as a bellwether for how the wider project is advancing.
Economic and urban planning significance
Officials have consistently framed the Blue Line as more than a transport project, positioning it as a core pillar of the Dubai Urban Plan 2040 and the Dubai Economic Agenda, D33. Al Tayer has previously stated that the project’s total economic benefits are estimated to exceed Dh56.5 billion by 2040, driven by savings in time and fuel as well as a reduction in accident-related fatalities.
The line is also projected to boost land and property values by up to 25 per cent in areas surrounding its stations, while helping to reduce traffic congestion by roughly 20 per cent along the corridors it serves, a particularly relevant benefit for areas like Dragon Mart that experience significant daily traffic volumes.
Engineering scale behind the scenes
The project’s scale is reflected in the equipment deployed to build it. The tunnel boring machines involved in the Blue Line’s construction weigh more than 2,000 tonnes each, and the consortium responsible for delivery has established dedicated ready-mix concrete plants and production yards at Al Ruwayyah 3 and International City to support the pace of construction required to meet the project’s ambitious timeline.
Once complete, the Blue Line will expand Dubai’s overall rail network to 131 kilometres, comprising 78 stations and 168 trains, with passenger numbers projected to reach 200,000 per day by 2030 and climb further to 320,000 per day by 2040 as ridership grows alongside the areas the line serves.
What comes next
With tunnelling now underway at multiple station sites across the network, attention will remain on whether the project continues to track toward its 30 per cent completion target by year-end. Barring unforeseen delays, the Blue Line remains on course for its planned opening date of September 9, 2029, a milestone that will mark a significant expansion of Dubai’s already extensive public transport network. Next Article
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