Route 2020 will connect the Expo 2020 site with the existing Red Line. It’s going to pass through Discovery Gardens, Green Community, and Dubai Investment Park, running mostly above ground, on the viaducts, except for the 3,2 km underground section before the terminal station at the Expo 2020. The extension will start at Nakheel Harbour And Tower and introduce a total of 7 new stations, 5 elevated and 2 underground. The journey time along the Route 2020 is expected to be about 16 minutes (from Expo 2020 site to Dubai Marina).
The new line will use 15 new trainsets of it’s own, and 35 more will be added on the existing routes to boost their capacity. The capacity of the Route 2020 itself will be 23 000 passengers an hour in each direction. The general number of passengers is expected to be about 125 000 per day initially and about 275 000 per day by 2030. During Expo 2020, the Expo station is expected to serve about one-fifth of the estimated number of visitors — about 35 000 on weekdays and 47 000 on weekends.
The building contract for the new line has been signed in June 2017 between the Roads & Transport Authority and Expolink consortium. The drilling work for the underground section has begun in October 2017. The construction is due to be complete by the fourth quarter of 2019 when the trial runs will start. And the full passenger services are scheduled to begin on May 20, 2020, five months ahead of the Expo 2020 opening.
