Arabian Business reported that Abu Dhabi is in talks with Dubai about connecting the two emirates via a high speed rail link.
Mr Abdulla Rashid Al Otaiba chairman of Abu Dhabi Department of Transport said that it is having conversations with Roads & Transport Authority about connecting Abu Dhabi and Dubai via the railway.
The Department of Transport's five year plan calls for the development of a high speed rail network, a metro and light rail network. It also calls for the construction of new roads, the introduction of water taxis, an upgrade of the emirate's fleet of buses and the continuation of its open skies policy to increase air traffic. The RTA is planning up to 8 metro lines that will link major destinations across the emirate.
Dubai is in the process of constructing its own metro, with the first two lines, red and green, expected to come online in September 2009 and March 2010 respectively. The red line will run from Al Maktoum International Airport in Jebel Ali, around the American University, through the city centre, and to the Airport Free Zone. The green line will run from Festival City, through the city centre, on to service Dubai International Airport Terminals 1 and 3, and finishing in Rashidiya. A blue line has also been earmarked to run along Emirates Road, although the exact route is currently unknown, and a fourth purple line will connect Dubai International Airport with Al Maktoum International Airport.
