UAE's first passenger railway, jointly built by Chinese companies, begins trial operations

(ECNS) -- The United Arab Emirates' first passenger railway, jointly built by Chinese companies, began trial operations on Monday, marking the start of a new era of passenger rail travel in the country.

The initial phase of the Etihad Rail service connects Fujairah and Abu Dhabi, cutting the journey time to one hour and 45 minutes.

The railway network is expected to expand later this year when Dubai Train Station and Al Dhaid Train Station will open on September 30, followed by stations in Al Dhafra three months later. The full route will be completed at the end of March next year with the opening of the Sharjah station.

As one of the UAE's largest infrastructure projects in recent years, the railway will connect 11 cities and regions across all seven emirates, with a total of 11 passenger stations. Annual ridership is projected to reach 36 million by 2030.

Chinese Ambassador to the UAE Zeng Jixin hailed the project as a landmark achievement in high-quality Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) cooperation between China and the UAE. He said it offers a successful example of how the two countries can deepen their comprehensive strategic partnership and practical cooperation in various fields.

Several Chinese companies have participated in the project, including China Railway International, CRRC Corporation, PowerChina, and China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation.

Yu Hao, project manager from China Railway International, said Chinese builders would draw on their full industrial-chain strengths in infrastructure to create more model projects for China-UAE cooperation.

(By Zhang Dongfang)