The Public Works Authority (Ashghal) has announced the opening of a new 700m underpass at the Mesaimeer Interchange, providing residents of Umm Al Seneem, Mesaimeer and Industrial Area with a free-flowing link between Industrial Area Road and E-Ring Road for the first time.

The opening of the underpass comes as part of the Rawdat Al Khail Street Extension project.
The new underpass, which is located underneath F-Ring Road and Mesaimeer Road, replaces an existing roundabout on Industrial Area Road and is expected to significantly improve traffic flow between the Industrial Area and Doha during peak travel times, Ashghal has said in a press statement.



The new underpass is located underneath F-Ring Road and Mesaimeer Road.




A number of officials and dignitaries attended the opening of the new underpass at the Mesaimeer Interchange




The opening of the underpass comes as part of the Rawdat Al Khail Street Extension project.

To further improve traffic flow towards the new underpass, the Authority has opened an additional 1.8km section of Industrial Area Road, which offers road users four lanes in each direction and enhances the road’s existing vehicle capacity by 25%, the statement notes.
The new section of Industrial Area Road and the underpass on Mesaimeer Interchange have been equipped with a new storm-water drainage network, which will allow Ashghal to significantly reduce the risk of flooding in the event of heavy rain or storms.
A number of senior officials and dignitaries were present at the inauguration of the new underpass, including Ashghal’s Expressway Department manager Yousef al-Emadi, Traffic Safety and Engineering Department manager Brigadier Mohamed Maarifiya, Central Municipal Council (CMC) members Abdularahman Abdullah al-Khulaifi and Abdullah bin Salim Khawar, and a number of Ashghal’s project engineers.
Al-Emadi stressed the importance of the new underpass as part of the Mesaimeer Interchange, one of the junctions of the Rawdat Al Khail Sreet Extension project. He highlighted the fact that it is a key passage that provides a direct link between the Industrial Area, the Khamis Leabidly roundabout (near Thumama) and E-Ring Road.
He said the signal-controlled intersection, due to open shortly, would alleviate traffic for commuters travelling from the Industrial area towards Umm Al Saneem, Abu Hamour, Mesaimeer and the Religious Complex, besides Hamad International Airport via F-Ring Road.
“With the completion of the whole project, including the major junctions and main and service roads,” al-Emadi added, “there will better movement and shorter journeys from the Industrial Area to Doha and less traffic in the areas around.”
Umm Al Seneem and Ain Khalid CMC member Khawar said the new Mesaimeer Interchange underpass opened by Ashghal is crucial for residents of neighbouring areas, noting that the road provides a major route connecting the Industrial Area with Doha. The opening will facilitate more traffic mobility in the area, which has until now faced the problem of congestion, and is an achievement on the part of Ashghal.
On his part, Al Maamoura CMC member al-Khulaifi said the underpass “will help reduce travel time remarkably and travelling to the Industrial Area will take no time”.
Further, he stressed that accessing the Industrial Area from the Khamis Leabidly roundabout will take 5-7 minutes and this will help streamline traffic, especially when the “at-grade signallised intersection” is accomplished. He also expressed his satisfaction at the speedy implementation of the project.
Brigadier Maarifiya said the new underpass will enhance vehicular movement, particularly after increasing the road capacity to four lanes in each direction, adding that travellers heading from the Industrial Area to Doha will experience free-flowing traffic as well.
The opening of the 700m underpass is the second major milestone on the three-level Mesaimeer (56) Interchange. The Authority had opened the interchange’s highest level, a 900m flyover that connects F-Ring Road to Mesaimeer Road, in July 2016. The final level, a signallised intersection that will provide new connections between F-Ring Road and Industrial Area Road, is expected to be complete before the end of 2017.
BOX: Rawdat Al Khail Street Extension project
The Mesaimeer (56) Interchange is one of five major, multi-level interchanges that are being constructed as part of the Rawdat Al Khail Street Extension project. Ashghal has opened three of the interchanges in 2017 - East Street 33 Interchange, Umm Al Seneem Interchange and Wadi Lubara Interchange.
Upon completion, the 12.5km Rawdat Al Khail Street Extension project will provide a free-flowing route between the Industrial Area and Al Thumama, through the upgrade and enhancement of Industrial Area Road, East Industrial Street and F-Ring Road.
The project is designed to serve residential and commercial stakeholders in Umm Al Seneem, Mesaimeer and the Industrial Area, and will enhance connectivity and ease of access to Barwa Commercial Avenue, Labour City, Asian Town and Mesaimeer Cemetery, Ashghal has said.