Palm Jumeirah Monorail

Palm Jumeirah Monorail

Test driving of the Dubai Monorail, 2009
Overview
Locale Dubai
Transit type straddle-beam monorail
Number of lines 1
Number of stations 4 (2 not open), 1 planned
Daily ridership ~40,000 (capacity), under contemporary interval 23,000. Current ridership much lower.
Website www.palm-monorail.com
Operation
Began operation April 30, 2009
Operator(s) Serco Group plc
Number of vehicles 4 (2009)[1] (only two visually seen in July 2014)
Technical
System length 5.45 kilometres (3 mi)[2]
Average speed 35 km/h
Top speed 70 km/h
System map
Legend
 Atlantis Aquaventure
Palm Mall
 Trump Tower
Gateway  T1 
Dubai Internet City  M1 
Plan Overview Of Palm Jumeirah Monorail Route

The Palm Jumeirah Monorail is a monorail line on the Palm Jumeirah island in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The monorail connects the Palm Jumeirah to the mainland, with a planned further extension to the Red Line of the Dubai Metro.[2] The line opened on April 30, 2009.[3] It is the first monorail in the Middle East.[4]

The trains are driverless, with attendants for any emergency situations.[1]

History

Construction began on the 5.45-kilometre (3 mi) monorail line in March 2006,[2] under the supervision of Marubeni Corporation, with the monorail track completed in July 2008 and vehicle testing beginning in November 2008. Originally planned to open by December 2008,[5] the opening was delayed to April 30, 2009.[2][5] In 2010, day-to-day operations were taken over by the Middle-East branch of Serco.[6]

The project budget is US$400 million, with an additional US$190M set aside for a 2-kilometre (1 mi) future extension to the Dubai Metro.[7] Another source speaks of a budget of US$1.1 billion.[8] A journey on the monorail costs Dhs15 one-way, 25 return.

Technology

The Palm Jumeirah Monorail uses Hitachi Monorail straddle-type technology. The line has a theoretical capacity of 40,000 passengers per day, with trains running every few minutes during peak hours and every 15 to 20 minutes during off-peak hours.[2][4] However, actual ridership averaged around 600 passengers per day during the first week,[9] and the monorail is running "virtually empty".[10] In July 2014, frequency was down to every 23 minutes with only one of two trains operating[11] The electro-mechanical works are carried out by ETA-Dubai in joint venture with Hitachi-Japan.

Stations

As of May 2009, only the Atlantis Aquaventure and Gateway stations are open.[8]

Planned extension:

References

  1. 1 2 Hitachi Ltd. "Monorail in Palm Jumeirah Island opened in April 2009". Retrieved 18 April 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Middle East's first monorail to start services in Palm Jumeirah by April". Gulf News. 2008-08-07. Retrieved 2008-08-11.
  3. ↑ "Palm monorail tried and tested - The Knowledge News". TimeOutDubai.com. Retrieved 2010-08-27.
  4. 1 2 "ME's 1st monorail to begin services in April". MENAFN.com. 2008-08-08. Retrieved 2008-08-11.
  5. 1 2 "Palm monorail hit by four-month delay". ArabianBusiness.com. 2008-07-22. Retrieved 2008-08-11.
  6. ↑ DVV Media UK. "Urban rail news in brief September 2010". Railway Gazette. Retrieved 18 April 2016.
  7. ↑ "Quiet please for region’s first monorail". ArabianBusiness.com. 2007-04-07. Retrieved 2008-08-11.
  8. 1 2 "Nice and Easy, but Fares Not So Fair". Khaleejtimes.com. 2009-05-07. Retrieved 2010-08-27.
  9. ↑ Sarah Blackman (2009-05-06). "Dubai's new Palm Monorail proves popular". ConstructionWeekOnline.com. Retrieved 2010-08-27.
  10. ↑ "Palm monorail: Where are the passengers? - XPRESS (United Arab Emirates)". Encyclopedia.com. 2009-05-27. Retrieved 2010-08-27.
  11. ↑ visit

External links

Media related to Palm Jumeirah Monorail at Wikimedia Commons

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