Palm Jumeirah Monorail, Dubai

The Middle East’s first monorail system has the capacity to carry 40,000 passengers each day across the plush Palm Jumeirah.

Palm Jumeirah Monorail runs silently from Gateway Station at the trunk of the Palm to the landmark Atlantis Hotel and waterpark. It opened to visitors in April 2009.

The Palm’s developer, Nakheel, appointed Mott MacDonald to monitor and assure quality through design and construction for the 5.4km rail, which has been being carried out by Japanese turnkey contractor Marubeni, working with civils contractor Obayashi, train builder and mechanical/electrical contractor Hitachi.

The type of monorail used was selected because it is slender and unobtrusive compared with a conventional light railway and looks futuristic. But the system is based on a very robust design that has been widely used in Japan.

Silent treatment

While the construction technology is simple – precast concrete track beams are fixed with an in-situ concrete ‘stitch’ to cast in-situ Y-shaped piers – the line has a snaking geometry. Great care was needed during casting and placement of the beams to make sure that curves and joints were smooth. The well proven design was employed to enable trains to run smoothly and silently, protecting the man-made island from noise.

Construction logistics

While the monorail was built, work was underway on all other parts of the Palm. Contractors on road and building projects vied with Obayashi for access to land and navigable channels have been dug under the monorail. Mott MacDonald had to liaise with other projects so that all could stay on schedule.

Capacity

The monorail’s three car trains initially ran at intervals of eight minutes, carrying 2400 passengers per hour. Ultimate capacity is 6000 per hour.