A delegation of members from the Central Municipal Council (CMC) conducted a site visit on Wednesday 17 February 2016, to the Lusail Expressway project implemented by the Public Works Authority. The delegation consisted of the Mr. Hamad Lahdan Al Muhannadi, the CMC Vice-Chairman and Head of Public Utilities Committee, Mr. Abdulrahman Al Khulaifi and Mr. Nasser Al Kubaisi, members of the Public Utilities Committee, and Mr. Nasser Rashed Al Muhannadi, Assistant Manager of Meeting and Member Affairs at CMC.

The delegation was accompanied by Mr. Nasser Gaith Al Kuwari, Manager of Ashghal’s Expressway Department, and Mr. Mohammed Saad Al-Meghaiseeb, Public Relations and Communication Department Acting Manager, and a team from Ashghal and the consulting and contracting companies. The delegation visited a number of the project’s work sites, namely; the Pearl intersection, Onaiza intersection, and Al Wahda Intersection. The CMC members were provided with a detailed explanation about the project, the progress made in its implementation, as well as the engineering and construction techniques used in order to guarantee the completion of the project according the required standards and schedule.

The delegation was also a briefed about the components and features of these intersections and the progress made in their implementation, in addition to the works currently being implemented, such as excavation and structural works in the Pearl intersection including the deck and walls of three of its tunnels, the Light Rail Transit (LRT), and the North and South Canal Crossings.

It is worth mentioning that Lusail Expressway Project is one of the most important expressway projects being implemented under Ashghal’s Expressway Program. The project aims to reconstruct and upgrade the existing Lusail Road from the South of the Arch Roundabout to the North Canal Crossing, providing a vital link between Doha City and Lusail City through an advanced network of tunnels, interchanges and bridges. The project includes three major multi-level interchanges, namely: Al Wahda Interchange, Onaiza Interchange, and The Pearl Interchange. The project also includes the construction of roads leading to The Pearl, Katara Cultural Village, Lusail City, the Diplomatic area, and the commercial and residential areas in the neighboring areas.

Lusail Expressway will extend over 5.3 km and will include four lanes in each direction, as well as additional lanes to ease the traffic flow between the interchanges. The project will also include the construction of approximately 3 km of infrastructure tunnels with internal diameters of approximately 3 meters to accommodate electricity cables of 132 kilo volt, and more than 1 km of infrastructure tunnels with internal diameter of 2.5 meters to drain the surface water.

One of the most important advantages of these tunnels is that they allow the construction of infrastructure services under the roads level and the other existing services, without the need to use traditional methods of deep excavation and refilling, and without changing the location of the existing roads and services. These tunnels will also provide an easy and quick access to the services inside the tunnels when maintenance works are required.
The works implemented in the project so far include the completion of most of the Light Rail Transit (LRT) works, which will be 1,106 meters in length, 9.5 meters in width, and 5.5 meters in height. Around half of the works associated with the North Canal Crossing are completed, while excavation and refilling works for the dam of the North Canal Crossing are underway.

In addition, a large part of the South Canal Crossing works is completed, including the demolishing of the existing Northern part of the Canal. Currently, construction of the piers and the supports is underway for the bridge which will be built in the same area. A large part of the infrastructure facilities is completed including the drinking water network, stormwater drainage network, sewage water drainage network, wastewater treatment networks, as well as the extension of the electricity and communication cables.

Currently, Al Wahda Interchange is being converted into a three-level interchange including a tunnel with three lanes in each direction to connect Al Dafna area with Lusail, in addition to an upper bridge with three lanes in each direction to connect Lusail Expressway with the city. Works of Onaiza Interchange are also ongoing, including three tunnels and a bridge. The deck of one of these tunnels is being constructed, while excavation and refilling works are implemented on the other two tunnels. The bridge piers are being constructed.

The site visit reflects the CMC’s keenness to follow the progress of the implementation works in the major projects, such as the Lusail Expressway, and their implementation according to the plans and schedules.