Doha: Qatar residents were thrilled to experience a new mode of transport as Doha Metro Red Line South opened for public on Wednesday.
The initial operation of the line extending from Al Qassar to Al Wakra will cover 13 of the 18 well-equipped stations of the Line with trains available every six minutes between 8 am and 11 pm.
The 13 stations in the Red Line are: Al Qassar, DECC, QIC West Bay, Corniche, Al Bidaa, Msherireb, Al Doha Al Jadeed, Umm Ghawalina, Al Matar Al Qadeem, Oqba Ibn Nafie, Free Zone, Ras Abu Fintas, Al Wakra.
Doha Metro is one of the fastest driverless trains in the world and will be the fastest in the region, able to reach 100 km an hour. In total, 110 trains, each consisting of three cars — one for Gold and Family Class and two for Standard class – will be in service. Gold will have 16 seats, family 26 seats and standard 88 seats.
Doha Metro stations boasting ATMs, food and retail outlets, prayer rooms and washrooms are equipped with advanced technologies such as digital screens and special tactile path on the floor, among others, for people with disabilities (PWD), assisting and guiding them on their journey.
The launch of the metro, originally planned for 2020, comes almost one year ahead of schedule and is seen as an important strategic move by the Qatar Railways Company (Qatar Rail).
It is an important stage for testing the Doha Metro system with passengers, providing an opportunity to evaluate and review the performance in preparation for the full operation of the network. During this stage, Qatar Rail aims to receive feedback from passengers that will help improve its services to provide the best possible customer experience and will devote its efforts to making the necessary evaluations to meet the expectations of the public.
As part of Qatar Rail’s aim to reduce the public’s dependence on private cars, car parking areas in stations are limited. Drop-off and pick-up parking areas are provided in all stations, although there are some stations that have limited parking spaces such as Al Wakra and Qasr.
Abdulla Saif Al Sulaiti, Chief of Service Delivery at Qatar Rail, said: “Many achievements have been made ahead of schedule, and today we stand at a turning point as the project shifts from the development stage to the operational stage. The preview service is a major opportunity to measure the efficiency of the network and the services we provide. The outputs of the preview service are essential for us, and we will build on them as we prepare for the full opening of the network by 2020.”
For his part, Ajlan Eid Al Enazi, Chief of Strategies and Business Development at Qatar Rail, said: “Doha Metro is considered one of the most important pillars of Qatar’s new integrated transport system. We invite everyone to experience the metro during this phase and to share with us their experience so that we can review the key factors that may affect our services in the future. We will develop solutions to address those factors to enhance the experience of passengers.”
In line with its continuous efforts to provide a comprehensive travel experience, and in cooperation with the Ministry of Transport and Communications, Qatar Rail has made preparations to integrate Doha Metro with other modes of transport, including free feeder buses services that will take passengers to and from stations. It has also signed several partnerships with other service providers to transport passengers at a low cost.