A number of road projects are being opened ahead of Eid Al-Adha and the new academic year with a view to reduce traffic congestion, Ashghal announced.
"Messila tunnel will be opened to traffic on Wednesday as part of the Phase 2 of Al Rayyan Road Development Project. This is in addition to the opening of Jassim bin Hamad Street, which is directly connected to Al Rayyan Road that has been expanded," it was explained in a statement.
This is apart from the partial opening of the Old Traffic Roundabout, which is being converted to a signal-controlled intersection.
The opening is part of a series of upcoming inaugurations in the coming days, which include the launching of Ali bin Abi Talib Street, the TV and Sports Intersections as well as the two tunnels beneath the Pearl Interchange.
Messila Tunnel, located under Al Rayyan Road, 800m to the west of the Olympic Roundabout, is considered the first construction achievement in the Phase 2 of Al Rayyan Road Development Project.
The opened section of the project includes the 2km of Al Rayyan Road with four lanes in each direction and Messila Tunnel which stretches under Al Rayyan Road and links Jassim bin Hamad Street and Al Rayyan Road including two lanes in each direction. The tunnel also comprises an exit loop to and from Al Rayyan Road and to Messila Tunnel with two lanes in each direction.
The project also includes a U-turn above Messila Tunnel as well as the entrances and service roads linking Al Rayyan Road and Jassim bin Hamad Road.
The newly opened 2km stretch of the main road has been expanded to four lanes in each direction which will increase the capacity of the road from 5,700 vehicles to 7,600 vehicles per hour, thus reducing congestion in that area, especially with the opening of service roads and entrances that will facilitate movement from Jassim bin Hamad Street to Al Rayyan Road and vice versa.
Messila Tunnel will enable access from Dukhan, Bani Hajar and New Al Rayyan to Jassim bin Hamad Street via the service road located east of Al Rayyan Road, and by using the tunnel’s loop to reach Jassim bin Hamad Street. This was not possible before the opening of Messila Tunnel, with those coming from Dukhan not being able to reach Jassim bin Hamad Street through Al Rayyan Road.
The new tunnel will also facilitate direct access from Madinat Khalifa to Al Rayyan Road. In the past, travellers from Madinat Khalifa had to go through a number of local roads and traffic diversions to reach the Olympic Roundabout, which is a 20 minute journey.
Now after the opening of Messila Tunnel, travellers can use the tunnel on Jassim bin Hamad Street and take the loop to enter Al Rayyan Road and from it to the Olympic Roundabout in about eight minutes. This will shorten the journey time by 60% compared to the use of internal roads and the previous traffic diversions.
The opening of Messila Tunnel is considered the beginning of the construction achievements in the Phase 2 of Al Rayyan Road Development Project, which includes the development of 5.5km west of the Olympic Roundabout to the west of Abdullah bin Khalid Al Attiyah Roundabout. This is in addition to the development of 6km of service roads and other services related to the project.
The project includes the construction of six multi-level interchanges, namely Al Rayyan Road Intersection with Jassim bin Hamad Street, the first construction achievement of the project in addition to the fact that Messila Tunnel includes an intersection with at grade traffic signals.
The interchanges also include Al Rayyan interchange, which is a four-level interchange, Al Rayyan intersection with Al Bustan Street, in addition to Lebayeh Interchange with four levels, the three-level Khalid bin Abdullah Al Attiyah interchange and old Al-Rayyan Interchange, a two-level interchange. The project is planned to be completed by the end of 2018.
Ashghal's Expressway Department manager Yousef al-Emadi has hailed the opening of Messila Tunnel which he described as the beginning of the opening of several roads before Eid Al Adha.
While thanking Asghal for opening a number of new roads, Doha Municipality director Jamal Matar al-Nuaimi hoped the new roads would give a long way to help reduce congestion. It has come at the right time as the new academic year is all set to start, he added.
