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Doha, Qatar: The Ministry of Transport (MoT) plans to increase the number of pedestrian crossings to 200 in coming years from the existing 50, in an ongoing project to provide pedestrian crossings at new places to enhance the safety of road users, including pedestrians and cyclists.
The pedestrian crossings include overpasses, underpasses and crosswalks.
“A study is currently underway to update the pedestrian crossing plan that will result in either building new crossings or upgrading the existing ones,” said Director of Land Transport Planning Department at the Ministry of Transport Saleh Saeed Mohammed Al Marri.
Speaking to Al Ryan TV recently, he said: “We built 50 crossings in the past few years and based on this study the number of crossings will be increased to over 200 by building new ones in the next few years.”
“There are a set of standards for the vehicles including buses and cars for raising the level of safety, whether through road designs or traffic control tools,” said Al Marri, adding that the study is being conducted to focus on non-motorists road users like cyclists and pedestrians.
He said that in line with Qatar National Vision 2030 and the strategy of the Ministry of Transport, the Ministry is building a safe, environmentally friendly and sustainable transportation system.
“According to the Transportation Master Plan for Qatar 2050, we focused on many factors, most notably sustainability to reduce emissions and use of eco-friendly energy. The plan also aims to reduce rate of accidents and duration of travel time,” said Al Marri.
“We also have a number of projects, for example, use of EURO5-equivalent diesel fuel and electric buses to lessen the impact of transportation on health and safety,” he added.
“We targeted to achieve the gradual transition of Qatar’s public transport bus system to 100% electric fleet by 2030. Currently, operating rate of electric buses has crossed 70%.”
The Transportation Master Plan 2050 works as a roadmap for investing in land transport and developing the transportation networks nationwide in a way that ensures their integration with urban development, population growth and the future demand for transportation.
Sustainability is the cornerstone of this plan, given the great impact this concept has on economic and environmental development by striking a balance between the requirements of economic growth and environmental protection.
