DUBAI — Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) eyes to fast-track a 5 billion dirham expansion of the city's Metro’s Red Line to link it to the Dubai World Central if the emirate wins the bid to host the World Expo 2020, Gulf News said on Thursday, quoting a top official.



Dubai has earmarked a large venue for the Expo 2020 at the Dubai World Central (DWC) — the 140-square kilometer airport city that will host a 160 million passenger capacity Al Maktoum International Airport and the world’s biggest greenfield airport project.



“As soon as the bid results are out and if we win — which we will Inshallah (God willing), we start the planning and development of the project,” Gulf News quoted Mattar Mohammad Al Tayer, Chairman of the Board and Executive Director of Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), as saying on Wednesday.



He said the plan to extend the Red Line to DWC has been laid and linked to the growth in the number of passengers at the Al-Maktoum International Airport that will launch commercial flights in October through a temporary terminal that can hold a capacity of five million passengers.



However, he said things will change in November, if the UAE wins the bid to host the World Cup in 2020,  “If that happens, we will start working on it from then, in November itself.” The airport, which was opened in 2010, currently handles cargo operations, Gulf News said.



Al-Tayer said the UAE’s Etihad Railway will also pass through Jebel Ali, which is close to the DWC, to bring additional visitors to the Expo site.



“We have already floated the tenders for the next stage of Etihad Rail’s development. The entire project is expected to be completed by 2017, and that will bring additional traffic to the area,” said Al Tayer, who is also on the Etihad Rail’s board. — SG