By the end of next month, traffic at one of Bahrain’s busiest junctions will be diverted as work is underway to replace the existing Alba Roundabout with a flyover. It will feature the country’s first three-level flyover with a traffic signal at the intersection between Estiqlal Highway and Shaikh Jaber Al Ahmed Al Sabah Highway.
It will also include a three-lane flyover in each direction carrying traffic along Estiqlal Highway and King Hamad Highway, and a one-way flyover carrying traffic from Shaikh Jaber Al Ahmed Al Sabah Highway towards King Hamad Highway.
It is part of a BD50 million project that will take 36 months to complete and includes transforming the existing Nuwaidrat Roundabout into a two-level interchange.
The project will heavily reduce congestion in the area, which witnesses more than 10,000 cars during rush-hour traffic.
Works, Municipalities and Urban Planning Affairs Minister Essam Khalaf toured the site recently as part of an inspection visit, along with other government officials.
“The project is one of the biggest and most important infrastructure projects in Bahrain,” he said in a statement.
“(It will) bear a lot of challenges during implementation including the amount of traffic and having many ground services on site, such as electricity, water and gas.”
The minister was accompanied by Works Affairs Under-Secretary Ahmed Al Khayyat, roads assistant under-secretary Huda Fakhro and roads projects and maintenance director Sayyed Bader Alawi.
They were given a detailed presentation on the progress of the work, including how the contractor would handle existing ground cables at the site, with the option of transferring them to locations in co-ordination with teams from the Electricity and Water Authority and Bapco.
“I have to stress the importance of reporting any incidents, obstacles or difficulties to officials at the ministry to promptly find solutions to such issues,” added Mr Khalaf.
The summer work ban was also discussed during the visit, including how to make up for lost time and ensure work is completed on schedule. The space in the middle of the roundabout will be cleared prior to installing the foundations of the flyover.
Quite a facelift that Bahrain is in for!