Few regions in the world are developing as much transportation infrastructure as the Gulf. Dubai airport expansion plans to raise capacity from 41 million passengers to 120-140 million and Qatar's Doha airport is following suit from 15 million passengers to 90 million. Oman is in the process of expanding its Muscat and Salalah airports and building four new airports. However staggering (and possibly questionable) this escalation in air transportation infrastructure is, it remains only part of the story of the ongoing transport development story.
Substantial growth is envisioned in terms of rail and sea simultaneously.
"The Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) has been promoting Dubai...[and] expects a steady increase of 135 ships with 375,000 tourists this year...By 2012, we see an increase of 150 cruise ships with 425,000 passengers. We expect this figure to swell to 165,000 ships with 475,000 passengers by 2013, 180 ships with 525,000 by 2014, and 195 ships with 575,000 tourists by 2015.”
The bidding process is underway for a comprehensive railway system in the UAE. The objective is to establish a 1,500 kilometer freight and passenger network across all seven emirates of the UAE with full service by 2017. Eventually the system will connect UAE to Saudi Arabia in the West and Oman in the East. Unlike India the Gulf States lack a railway system. This project has the potential to change the demographics and the lifestyles of the inhabitants of the Gulf States. To help envision this, consider that the Indian Rail site is the 10th most viewed site in India (see below), with more page views than linkedin and msn.com - a comprehensive railway system will impact general everyday life decisions.
Before that future can be reached more action is in store through the bidding process. "China Railway Construction Corp [recently] built the $1.8 billion Mecca Metro between Mecca and the holy sites of Mina, Arafat and Muzdalifah, Saudi Arabia's first dual-track light railway, which opened in November to ease congestion during the annual Haj pilgrimage." Undoubtedly Chinese bid's will come with a lower pricetag than their European counterparts, however with economic protectionism currently ensnaring flagship Gulf carriers in Canada and Germany perhaps a cheaper pricetag and a more fair international business relationship will equate success in the coming railway bidding competition for the prize of $11 billion in railway projects.
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