The QAR1.59bn ($436m) Salwa Road development project in Doha, Qatar is on track to be completed by December 2012.

The project involves the extension of the 6.9km stretch from the Industrial Interchange, opened in May this year, to the Al Asiri Interchange. The highway is being expanded to four lanes on each side, which stretches towards Abu Samra where Qatar’s border with Saudi Arabia is. It forms the second phase of the expansion of the road and is part of the Seventh Package of Doha Expressway.

A joint-venture between Qatar’s Midmac Contracting and Turkey’s Yuksel Insaat began construction in July 2010. As part of the works, the four roundabouts at various stretches of the road are being converted into interchanges, which include Qatar Decoration, Central Market, Aziziya and Ain Khalid.

The package includes expanding mainline traffic to a four-lane carriageway that will accommodate local traffic through two-lane access roads on both sides. The project also involves the construction of four single-point urban interchanges (SPU1) on Salwa road at Al Bustan (Qatar Decoration roundabout), Wholesale Market, Aziziyya and New Al Ghanem (Ain Khalid roundabout).

New tunnels at the Wholesale market and Aziziya will be combined into a single tunnel, in a bid to reduce the distance between the two interchanges. An integrated traffic system (ITS) will also be used, with cameras installed at various construction points for continuous monitoring.A

All the infrastructure services on the Salwa Road will be upgraded and the existing services along the road will be maintained. Service roads and parking slots will be developed on both sides of the road.

The entire Doha Expressway project will cost around QR8bn ($2.1bn) and will connect north and south of Qatar, passing through the country’s capital.