Qatar has developed a bicycle master plan, as part of the transport master plan that aims to make Doha a regional centre for cycling and sport, a senior official of the Ministry of Municipality and Urban Planning said here yesterday. The plan envisages to provide exclusive areas for cycling and dedicated lanes for bicycles and pedestrians in major roads and highways, said Mohamed Abdah, Director of Transportation and Infrastructure Planning Department at the Ministry. He was giving a presentation on “the vision of future transport system in Qatar” at the UITP MENA Public Transport and Large Events Summit that opened at Hilton Doha hotel yesterday. Mowasalat’s chairman and managing director Jassim Saif Al Sulaiti and Abdul Aziz Al Ohaly, Deputy Minister of Transport of Saudi Arabia and UITP MENA chairman addressed the opening session of the conference. “The master plan aims to ensure the safety of all bicycle users on all roads in Qatar. The vision is to make Qatar a center for cycling and sports. A bicycle network will be developed for all types of bicycles. Future roads in Qatar will have dedicated lanes for bicycles, pedestrians as well as green areas and landscapes,” said Abdah. He said a feasibility study is currently underway on a bus rapid transit system (RTS) in Qatar, with separate lanes for high capacity buses, supported with state-of-the art bus stations and pedestrian bridges. The transport master plan was developed keeping in view the rapid population growth in the country, he added. “The population grew from 800,000 in 2006 to the current 1.8million proving the predictions wrong. Keeping this growth in view, the transport master plan was developed to provide the maximum capacity, meeting the requirements of populations up to 3.8 million over the next few decades,” said Abdah. All the key locations and high density areas such as the Central Doha, New Doha International Airport, Lusail City, West Bay and Education City will be connected through a high quality road network, which will also serve the basis for the metro network. Earlier in his speech, Al Sulaiiti said, Mena region is in the international agenda for large events and is preparing for major investments in infrastructure development with Qatar hosting the Football World Cup 2022, Saudi Arabia hosting Haj pilgrims over three million every year, Dubai hosting world cup in horse race every year and Abu Dhabi hosting Formula 1. “Mowasalat’s vision is to be a preferred provider of integrated transport solutions in Mena region. Many challenges will be overcome by us for delivering a successful large scale event, by investing in public transport and related infrastructure development,” said Al Sulaiti. The Peninsula

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