ABU DHABI // The emirate is to start building a 62-kilometre Abu Dhabi-Dubai main road, which is expected to be completed by 2017, the Department of Transport announced yesterday.
The Dh2.1 billion project, called E311, will run parallel to the existing Abu Dhabi-Dubai (E11) motorway. It will extend from Mohammed bin Zayed Road in Saih Sheib through Al Maha Forest and Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi (Kizad), and will join at the Sweihan Road.
In February last year, the DoT said the project would be executed through two tenders and completed by the end of 2014. No reasons were given yesterday for the change of completion date.
The E311 aims to ease traffic on the E11 as studies have shown that traffic was expected to increase from 700 vehicles an hour at peak time to more than 12,000 vehicles by 2030 as a result of population growth.
It will have four lanes in each direction, plus a hard shoulder and a central reservation. The central reservation will be designed for upgrading and future expansion, if necessary. Six upper junctions will be built, and the lay-bys will be designed for emergency use by light vehicles and heavy lorries and as a patrol point for police, ambulance, and other emergency vehicles.
The new main road will have five U-turn facilities for emergency vehicles only.
It will feature a rainwater drainage system and will have ample lighting that follows sustainable standards of reducing energy consumption.
The DoT is also building the 327km Mafraq-Ghweifat main road, which is also expected to be completed by 2017.
Six consortiums and companies have been contracted by the DoT for the E311 and the Mafraq-Ghweifat main road and the projects are estimated to cost Dh7.4bn.
This follows the approval of the Executive Council at its recent meeting presided over by Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces and chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council.
It extends from Mafraq to the international border linking the UAE with Saudi Arabia in Ghweifat. It also passes through the industrial centre in Ruwais and some tourist and commercial locations in Abu Dhabi. Eighty kilometres of the road that links Baynounah Forest – east of Ruwais towards Silaa – was built in 2011.
Four new lanes will be built in each direction from Mafraq to Baraka. When finished, there will be three lanes in each direction, with the road expanding to four lanes in each direction in the 22km closest to the borders with Saudi Arabia, from Silaa to Ghweifat.
The central reservation has been designed to accommodate two future lanes in each direction, if necessary. The project will also see the building of 15 new upper junctions at Mussaffah, Al Dhafra, Icad, Tarif, Al Marfa East and Al Marfa West. Existing junctions in Mafraq, Hamim, Abu Al Abyad, and Madinat Zayed will be modified.
There will be lay-bys in each direction of the Mafraq-Ghweifat main road for light vehicles and heavy lorries, as well as for ambulance, police vehicles, petrol stations and a weigh station.
rruiz@thenational.ae
US tops drug cost charts
The study of 13 essential drugs showed costs in the United States were about 300 per cent higher than the global average, followed by Germany at 126 per cent and 122 per cent in the UAE.
Thailand, Kenya and Malaysia were rated as nations with the lowest costs, about 90 per cent cheaper.
In the case of insulin, diabetic patients in the US paid five and a half times the global average, while in the UAE the costs are about 50 per cent higher than the median price of branded and generic drugs.
Some of the costliest drugs worldwide include Lipitor for high cholesterol.
The study’s price index placed the US at an exorbitant 2,170 per cent higher for Lipitor than the average global price and the UAE at the eighth spot globally with costs 252 per cent higher.
High blood pressure medication Zestril was also more than 2,680 per cent higher in the US and the UAE price was 187 per cent higher than the global price.
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Crazy Rich Asians
Director: Jon M Chu
Starring: Constance Wu, Henry Golding, Michelle Yeon, Gemma Chan
Four stars
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Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
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Starring: Raed Zeno, Hadi Awada, Dr Mohammad Abdalla
Director: Raed Zeno
Rating: 4/5
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Aston Martin Rapide AMR
Engine: 6.0-litre V12
Transmission: Touchtronic III eight-speed automatic
Power: 595bhp
Torque: 630Nm
Price: Dh999,563
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Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
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The specs
Engine: 77.4kW all-wheel-drive dual motor
Power: 320bhp
Torque: 605Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh219,000
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Hotel Data Cloud profile
Date started: June 2016
Founders: Gregor Amon and Kevin Czok
Based: Dubai
Sector: Travel Tech
Size: 10 employees
Funding: $350,000 (Dh1.3 million)
Investors: five angel investors (undisclosed except for Amar Shubar)
APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Storage: 128/256/512GB
Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4
Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR 4, full-HD @ 25/30/60fps
Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID
Colours: Blue, purple, space grey, starlight
In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
Price: From Dh2,099
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
The biog:
From: Wimbledon, London, UK
Education: Medical doctor
Hobbies: Travelling, meeting new people and cultures
Favourite animals: All of them
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SQUADS
Pakistan: Sarfraz Ahmed (capt), Azhar Ali, Shan Masood, Sami Aslam, Babar Azam, Asad Shafiq, Haris Sohail, Usman Salahuddin, Yasir Shah, Mohammad Asghar, Bilal Asif, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Amir, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Abbas, Wahab Riaz
Sri Lanka: Dinesh Chandimal (capt), Lahiru Thirimanne (vice-capt), Dimuth Karunaratne, Kaushal Silva, Kusal Mendis, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Roshen Silva, Niroshan Dickwella, Rangana Herath, Lakshan Sandakan, Dilruwan Perera, Suranga Lakmal, Nuwan Pradeep, Vishwa Fernando, Lahiru Gamage
Umpires: Ian Gould (ENG) and Nigel Llong (ENG)
TV umpire: Richard Kettleborough (ENG)
ICC match referee: Andy Pycroft (ZIM)
The%20specs
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
Thank You for Banking with Us
Director: Laila Abbas
Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum
Rating: 4/5
Roll%20of%20Honour%2C%20men%E2%80%99s%20domestic%20rugby%20season
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Singham Again
Director: Rohit Shetty
Stars: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Deepika Padukone
Rating: 3/5
Jigra
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
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