If you are planning a trip from a construction headline, start with the line you can actually ride. Most of the projects below are real, dated and worth knowing. Almost none of them will carry you this month. Dubai infrastructure under construction is a stack of different statuses: one metro line is being dug, another is approved and not yet out to tender, a railway station has a date, and a tunnel still has a design contract. Use the Red Line and the Green Line, and the roads that are already open. Everything else is a date to put in a diary, not a way to get to dinner.
Dubai Metro Blue Line
The Blue Line is under construction. It is the only one of the two new metro lines you can fairly describe that way. The Roads and Transport Authority says it opens on 9 September 2029. Nobody rides it in 2026, and 2028 is the wrong year to put in a plan. Until it opens, stay on the Red Line and the Green Line.
The route was approved in November 2023. The contract followed in December 2024. Foundation work started in June 2025. Tunnelling was launched on 3 May 2026. On that date the RTA put the job at about 20 per cent complete, and expected about 30 per cent by the end of 2026. That is the figure to keep. Older “10 per cent” cards, and any 24 per cent claim, are out of date.
The line is about 30 kilometres: 15.5 km underground and 14.5 km above ground. There are two branches. The Creek branch leaves the Green Line at Al Jaddaf and runs via Festival City, Dubai Creek Harbour, Ras Al Khor and International City, then on to Dubai Silicon Oasis and Academic City. That branch is about 21 km with 10 stations. The Centrepoint branch leaves the Red Line at Al Rashidiya and runs via Mirdif and Al Warqa to International City 1. That branch is about 9 km with 4 stations. The depot is at Al Ruwayyah 3.
Two details are easy to over-read. This will be the first metro bridge over Dubai Creek, about 1.3 km long, and Emaar is named for a station at Creek Harbour. Neither is a reason to change a 2026 hotel booking. The official account is the RTA notice of 3 May 2026.
Dubai Metro Gold Line
The Gold Line is approved. It is not under construction. On 22 April 2026 Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid directed that work begin, and the same RTA release is clear about the sequence that follows: the tender is in 2026, the contract is awarded in 2027, and construction comes after that. The opening date is 9 September 2032. You will not ride it in 2026, and you should not tell a guest that digging has started.
The investment is about AED 34 billion. The line is about 42 km, with 18 stations, and it is planned as Dubai’s first fully underground metro, at a depth of about 40 metres. The RTA also talks about 15 strategic locations. Treat the place names as a map of intent, not a finished station list. Do not invent the stations that have not been named.
Places named in the notice include Al Ghubaiba, Mina Rashid, City Walk, Business Bay, Mohammed Bin Rashid City, Nad Al Sheba, Mohammed bin Rashid Gardens, Meydan, Al Barsha South, Jumeirah Village Circle and Jumeirah Golf Estates. The interchanges that are spelled out are the useful part: Red Line at Business Bay and Jumeirah Golf Estates, Green Line at Al Ghubaiba, and Etihad Rail at Meydan and Jumeirah Golf Estates.
On network size, use the RTA’s own figure. It puts growth at 35 per cent, taking the network from 120 km once the Blue Line is counted to 162 km with the Gold Line. That is the number to quote. The source is the RTA approval notice of 22 April 2026.
Hessa Street, and a second road contract
Hessa Street is the road project with a piece you can already drive. Phase 1 opened on 19 April 2026, from Sheikh Zayed Road to Al Khail Road. That stretch is finished. It is not a build you are waiting on.
Phase 2 is under construction. It is about 3 km, from Al Khail Road to Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Road. The contract was awarded on 22 February 2026. The RTA has not given a Phase 2 finish date, so do not invent one. Where the notices talk about capacity, the honest word is “doubled”. Hourly vehicle figures in different reports do not agree, so leave them out. Details are in the Phase 1 opening notice and the Phase 2 contract notice.
A separate contract, for Umm Suqeim Street, Al Wasl Road and Al Safa Street, was awarded on 26 April 2026. That notice does not say site works have started, and it has no opening date. Do not call it under construction. Any timing in the release is “upon completion”, which is not a date you can book around. The Dubai Media Office note is the one to re-check if a driver tells you the road is already shut.
Etihad Rail, and the Dubai station
This is the project most likely to matter soon. It is not open. As of 18 September 2026 the Dubai station is set for Wednesday 30 September 2026. Re-check Etihad Rail on the morning you travel. A date a fortnight out can still move, and a blog should not be the last word on a ticket.
The names do not match, and both are worth keeping. Etihad Rail’s own passenger page says “Dubai station”. Gulf News has reported on-site signage for Dubai Al Yalayis Station, near Jumeirah Golf Estates. I have written up the practical side on the Etihad Rail Al Yalayis guide. Use that, then confirm on the day.
What is already running is the Abu Dhabi to Fujairah service, since 30 June 2026. Gulf News has reported a journey of about 57 minutes to Mohammed Bin Zayed City. That timing is a newspaper figure, not a claim from Etihad Rail’s website, so treat it as a report rather than a timetable. There is no Dubai fare to publish yet, so do not budget from a guessed price. Sharjah Station is listed for 30 March 2027. The corporate page is here: Etihad Rail passenger services.
Dubai Air Taxi
The station near Dubai International Airport is built. Commercial flying is not. On 16 April 2026 Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed reviewed the completed station. It is four storeys, with two pads. Joby has the exclusive operating right for six years. The stated aim is a launch by the end of 2026. That is an aim, not a start date. Do not say the service has begun, and do not say it has slipped. If you need the airport this year, use the metro and a normal transfer, as on the Dubai International Airport guide.
Stations at Downtown, the Palm and Dubai Marina have been announced. They have not been confirmed as built, so do not plan a hop between them. There is no fare to quote. Older “12 minutes to Atlantis The Royal” lines belong to a different telling of this idea, and Archer is a different company. Leave both out. The review is on the Media Office page of 16 April 2026.
Dubai Loop
Dubai Loop is not a ride. An implementation agreement with The Boring Company was signed on 3 February 2026. On 4 May 2026 Parsons was awarded a nine-month contract for design verification, permitting and no-objection certificates. Tunnelling has not been confirmed as started. The system is not operating.
Phase 1, once design is done, is described as about 6.4 km from DIFC to Dubai Mall, at about AED 565 million, and about a year after design. The wider scheme is up to 22.2 km, 19 stations and about AED 2 billion. The early station names are not settled enough to print, so this guide does not list them. For the surface version of that same part of town, use the Downtown Dubai and Dubai Mall guides, and the metro you already have. Sources: the RTA signing note and the Parsons contract note.
Elevated walkways
The walkway with a 2026 contract is the historic Al Ras scheme, Dubai Walk Phase I. The contract was awarded on 22 March 2026: about 12 km of walkways and 5 km of cycling tracks. The notice does not say digging has started, and it gives no finish date. It is not a path you can walk this year. The note is here: Media Office, 22 March 2026.
Future Loop is a different idea, and it is only an announcement. The master plan is dated 7 December 2024: a 2 km elevated walkway linking Dubai World Trade Centre, the Museum of the Future, Emirates Towers and DIFC. It is not under construction. The Museum of the Future is closed until the first quarter of 2027, so do not write that link as a walking route now. Alternatives while it is shut are on the Museum of the Future alternatives page. The 2024 plan is on the Media Office Dubai Walk page.
Al Maktoum International Airport is the large project that does not belong on a 2026 visitor list. Development is large-scale construction, and the stated course is to commence operations in 2032. That is not a terminal opening this year, and it is not a reason to change an airport transfer. The June 2026 approval is on the Media Office page.
Conclusion
Seven projects, three honest uses. Drive the open piece of Hessa Street. Ride the Red Line and the Green Line. Watch 30 September if you want the Dubai rail station, and check Etihad that morning. The Blue Line is a 2029 opening. The Gold Line is a 2032 opening that has not started on site. The air taxi has a station and no service. Dubai Loop has a design contract. The new walkways are not paths yet. If a driver, a hotel concierge or a caption tells you otherwise, ask which notice they mean, and what date is on it.
FAQ
Can I ride the Blue Line in 2026?
No. It is under construction and the RTA opening date is 9 September 2029. Use the Red Line and the Green Line.
Has construction started on the Gold Line?
No. It is approved. The tender is in 2026, the contract award is in 2027, and construction follows. The opening date is 9 September 2032.
Is the Dubai Etihad Rail station open?
Not as of 18 September 2026. It is set for 30 September 2026. The operator’s page says Dubai station. Gulf News has reported the on-site name Dubai Al Yalayis Station. Re-check before you travel, and do not rely on a published Dubai fare, because there is not one here.
Can I book the air taxi?
No. The station near Dubai International is complete. The service is not live. The aim is a launch by the end of 2026, which is not the same as a start.
Is Dubai Loop running between DIFC and Dubai Mall?
No. Phase 1 is still a design, permitting and approvals job. Tunnelling has not been confirmed. Take the metro.
Key Takeaways
- Blue Line: under construction, opens 9 September 2029, about 20 per cent complete in May 2026.
- Gold Line: approved, not under construction, opens 9 September 2032, tender in 2026 and contract in 2027.
- Hessa Street Phase 1 is open. Phase 2 is the 3 km still being built, with no published finish date.
- Umm Suqeim, Al Wasl and Al Safa have a contract, not a confirmed start of works.
- Etihad Rail’s Dubai station is set for 30 September 2026 and was not open on 18 September.
- The air taxi station at the airport is built. You cannot fly it yet.
- Dubai Loop and the new walkways are contracts and plans, not journeys you can take this year.
