Muscat: Driving to Dubai or to the Sohar port will become easier as travellers and commuters will be able to use the Al Batinah Expressway from as early as 2017, announced the Ministry of Transport and Communications (MoTC).
Last year, an 18-kilometre (km) section of the highway from Muscat to Wilayat Barka had opened and commuters from Barka saw a great improvement in the time taken for them to travel to work.
One driver said he found it quite efficient to get to work, but when the road is completely finished, it will be better.
“In the morning when I drive to work, the street is empty and it is easier to commute since the main highway is always congested,” said Shabib Anwar, a local resident in Barka, who drives to Muscat every morning for work.
“But at night it is mostly packed, with a group of young guys driving up and down the street, while some are parked on the side socialising with one another. I believe that when the whole expressway is done, it will make it easier to travel to and from Dubai,” added the Omani national.
The Muscat-Barka section is part of package 1, which is a 45 km road from the Al Filaij roundabout in Wilayat Barka to Wilayat Rustaq. A senior official from MoTC said this package is 89 per cent complete.
Package 2 covers a distance of 42 km between Wilayat Rustaq and Wilayat Suwaiq, while package 3 covers 46 km from Wilayat Suwaiq to Wilayat Saham.
Package 4 stretches 50 km from Wilayat Saham to Wilayat Sohar carrying on to package 5, which continues for 41 km to Wilayat Liwa.
The official further stated, “Construction work for packages 2, 3, 4 and 5 is 30 per cent to 60 per cent complete.”
Package 6, which is a 45 km stretch from Wilayat Liwa to Khatmat Milaha, includes 136 viaducts, two overpasses, four wadi crossing bridges and four intersections. “Work for this is 70 per cent complete and we hope that it will be completed this year as there are no problems,” said the official.
He added that he hoped the packages will be completed in 2016. “Packages 2, 4 and 5 will be ready in the first quarter of 2017, while package 2 will be completed in the first half of 2017, since it was awarded late,” he said, adding that construction work is currently in full swing.
When fully completed, the road will have a total length of 265 km, stretching from Halban to Khatmat Milaha in Wilayat Shinas, and will contain four lanes on each side with a four- metre island in between.
S Rao, who regularly drives to Sohar from Muscat, said, “Right now, it is a nightmare as it is just two lanes and too many vehicles on the road.”
A national, who requested to remain anonymous added, “Driving to Dubai could become much easier since the road will be spacious enough for a comfortable drive.”
“I believe the time taken to reach the Emirates will be cut short because of the road,” he added.