Abu
Dhabi plans to create a second city centre to
accommodate a projected threefold growth in
population.
"We are creating the Capital City District, with
a population of 350,000 to 380,000 residents,"
Falah Al Ahbabi, General Manager of the Abu
Dhabi Urban Planning Council told Bloomberg. "It
will form a second centre for Abu Dhabi, located
on the mainland in the area that has been known
up to now as Khalifa C."
The population of Abu Dhabi will grow from
around 1 million people to 3 million by 2030,
according to the planning council.
"This will pose significant sustainability
challenges in terms of mobility and
transportation," Al Ahbabi said in the
statement.
The UPC is thinking ahead many years to
decentralise population density currently
centred in the north eastern part of Abu Dhabi
Island, with a high density spine extending
southwards along Airport Road. "Abu Dhabi's
population is projected to rise to three million
by 2030. This will pose significant
sustainability challenges in terms of mobility
and transportation concerns. In 2008 with
approximately one million residents, Abu Dhabi
is centred in one area, posing immense
challenges for commuters," said Al Ahbabi.
"The remainder of Abu Dhabi Island is developed
with palaces, villas, mosques, schools and other
institutional and recreational activities while
there are extensive low-density suburbs on the
mainland." By 2030, the UPC reckons the land use
structure of the city will change dramatically
to create a city, which will function well with
more than three times its current population.
"We are creating the Capital City District, with
a population of 350,000 to 380,000 residents,
which will form a second centre for Abu Dhabi,
located on the mainland in the area that has
been known up to now as Khalifa C," explained Al
Ahbabi. "It will sit on an axis that is an
extension of the Mussafah Bridge alignment. The
new district will be at the centre of the
mainland Emirati communities." On Abu Dhabi
Island, the city centre will be expanded
north-eastwards to encompass Sowwah Island (the
new Financial Centre), the redeveloped Mina
Zayed port area, and parts of Reem Island. This
will continue to be the financial and commercial
heart of Abu Dhabi.
Meanwhile the Capital City District – the new
location of the UAE Government, embassies and
some Emirate and Municipality government
functions – will be appropriate for the seat of
the National Government.
"As the capital of the UAE, Abu Dhabi is
asserting its natural political leadership by
promoting a visionary and forward thinking urban
development strategy with its own dimension
given to the term and based on influence rather
than size. By developing the concept of
'Sustainable Urban Mobility', the UPC is
promoting a concrete and influential example
that demonstrates the consistency of our
approach. It demonstrates our capability to cope
with the contemporary urban living life-styles
promoted in Plan Abu Dhabi 2030," said Al Ahbabi.
New transport infrastructure will be developed
to connect the City Centre with the Capital City
District. The existence of two centres will
create an efficient movement system. In single
centred cities there is a great 'tidal flow' of
commuting traffic into the centre in the morning
that congests incoming routes while leaving
outgoing routes half empty. Then the opposite
happens for the evening commute. In a dual-centred
city, there is nearly equal movement between the
centres, so that street space and public
transport are fully utilised in both directions
at once.
Al Ahbabi clarifies: "By breaking the mould of a
traditional 'City Planning' model, the UPC is
promoting a new mindset through responsive
urbanism concepts. Our role is to think and act
ahead in order to deliver on our promise."
In 2030, Abu Dhabi will have a series of major
centres of activity. In addition to the dominant
City Centre and Capital City District, Abu Dhabi
will have a series of major centres of activity.
The Abu Dhabi mainland will expand substantially
with the redevelopment and expansion of Shahama-Bahia,
Baniyas and Wathba.
