en.Wedoany.com Reported - Recently, the Dubai Roads and Transport Authority of the United Arab Emirates issued a tender for research and design of the Airport Express project, planning to build a rail transit line connecting Dubai International Airport with Al Maktoum International Airport. The rail line is approximately 55 kilometers long, with five planned stations, and will connect to the existing metro network. Interested companies must submit their proposals by June 2026.
According to the tender documents, the rail line will start from the Red Line metro station at Dubai International Airport, pass through Jaddaf, extend along Gulf Road to the new Jumeirah Village Circle station, and finally reach Al Maktoum International Airport. The stations will offer remote check-in, baggage drop-off, and security screening facilities to enhance connectivity between rail transit and aviation transportation.
The rail project plans two branches. The first branch extends from the new Jumeirah Village Circle station to the Fardan Exchange metro station at Emirates Golf Club, while the second branch diverges toward Business Bay and builds a new station in that area. The alignment of the Airport Express is roughly parallel to sections of the Abu Dhabi-Dubai high-speed rail line being advanced by Etihad Rail.
The Airport Express is the second rail transit project tendered by the Dubai Roads and Transport Authority since 2026. Earlier, the extension of the Expo 2020 line, connecting the Expo 2020 metro station to the West Terminal of Al Maktoum International Airport, had already launched. The extension is about 3 kilometers long with two new planned stations. The existing Expo 2020 line was built by a consortium of Spain's Acciona, Turkey's Gulermak, and France's Alstom, spanning 15 kilometers including an 11.8-kilometer elevated section and a 3.2-kilometer tunnel section, with a contract value of approximately $2.9 billion.
Dubai continues to advance multiple rail transit plans. Among them, the Blue Line is being built by a consortium of CRRC Hong Kong, Turkey's MAPA, and Turkey's LIMAK, with a project contract of approximately $5.6 billion. The line spans about 30 kilometers and was 12% complete as of January 2026. For the Gold Line, which starts from Al Gubaiba and runs parallel to the existing Red Line to relieve passenger pressure while extending inland, U.S.-based Aecom has been selected to provide consulting services. The Purple Line and Pink Line are still in the early planning stages.
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