Dubai Metro Blue Line: 2029 opening & construction tracker
The Blue Line is the metro’s first eastward expansion: 14 stations linking Dubai Festival City, Dubai Creek Harbour, International City, Silicon Oasis and Academic City to both existing lines. It opens September 9, 2029 — about 3 years 1 month away — and construction is real and visible: ~30% complete as of mid-2026, tunneling underway.
Stations
14
Length
30 km
Underground / elevated
15.5 / 14.5 km
Progress (mid-2026)
~30%
Opens
Sep 9, 2029
Countdown
3 years 1 month
Construction status
| Phase | Status |
|---|---|
| Route, stations and design announced | Done |
| Main construction contracts awarded | Done |
| Civil works & tunneling (15.5 km underground section) | In progress — ~30% overall |
| Viaducts & elevated stations (14.5 km) | In progress |
| Track, systems, trains & testing | Upcoming |
| Trial running & handover | Upcoming |
| Passenger service opens | Sep 9, 2029 |
We update the progress figure whenever the RTA reports a new one - the last officially reported number is ~30% (2026-06).
The Y-shaped route, explained
Y-shaped: Creek branch and Centrepoint branch merging at International City 1, continuing to Academic City In practice that means two ways into the eastern districts:
- Creek branch (from the Green Line): Creek → Dubai Festival City → Dubai Creek Harbour → Dubai Square → Ras Al Khor Industrial → International City 1
- Centrepoint branch (from the Red Line): Centrepoint → City Centre Mirdif → Al Warqa → Dragon Mart → International City 3 → International City 1
- Shared trunk: International City 1 → International City 2 → Dubai Silicon Oasis → Academic City
Planned station names per RTA announcements; as with every Dubai line, names can change before (and after) opening - we track renames as a feature.
Two record-setting stations
International City 1: the network’s biggest underground hub
The Y-junction station where both branches meet will be the largest underground interchange in the network: more than 44,000 square metres, engineered for 350,000 passengers a day. For scale, that single station is designed to handle more daily riders than many entire metro systems.
Dubai Creek Harbour: the world’s tallest metro station
The Emaar Properties Station at Dubai Creek Harbour rises 74 metres - the tallest metro station ever built - designed by SOM, the practice behind the Burj Khalifa. It is intended as a landmark gateway for the Creek Harbour district, not just a stop.
What it means if you ride the metro today
- Creek station (Green Line) becomes an interchange - the quiet terminus gets a second life as the gateway to Festival City and Creek Harbour.
- Centrepoint (Red Line) becomes the transfer point for Mirdif, Al Warqa and Dragon Mart - and its park-and-ride gets even more useful.
- First metro access for the east: International City, Silicon Oasis and Academic City - home to hundreds of thousands of residents and students - move from bus-only to direct rail.
How the Blue Line compares to the 2009 original
The scale tells you how metro-building has changed in twenty years. The 2009 Red Line launched with 10 stations open along 52 km of mostly elevated viaduct, built to prove that Dubai could run a metro at all. The Blue Line arrives as a mature-network piece: half its length underground, a junction station bigger than some airports’ terminals, and an architecture brief that treats stations as landmarks. What has not changed is the opening-day discipline - September 9, at 9 seconds past 9:09, is a tradition the RTA takes seriously, and both previous rail openings hit their announced dates.
The other difference is who it serves. The original line chased the skyline - the corridor of towers along Sheikh Zayed Road. The Blue Line chases the census: International City, Silicon Oasis and Academic City are where a huge share of Dubai’s workforce and students actually live. It is the first line whose primary job is residential commuting rather than the tourist-and-office spine, and its projected ridership is built on exactly that daily traffic.
Getting ready for 2029
Nothing about your Nol card, the fare model, or the timetable structure has been announced as changing for the Blue Line - it plugs into the same system, with zone assignments to be confirmed closer to opening. The practical thing to watch is the two interchange stations: if you live or work near Creek or Centrepoint, your station is about to become dramatically better connected - and, if Dubai’s property pattern holds, the districts around all 14 stations will price that in well before the first train runs. We will publish zone assignments, fares and the opening timetable here the day the RTA confirms each.
What each branch will serve
The Y-shape means two distinct catchments feed one trunk. The Creek branch, splitting off the Green Line at Creek, threads the waterfront megaprojects: Dubai Festival City’s mall and hotels, the record-setting Dubai Creek Harbour tower cluster, Dubai Square, and the Ras Al Khor industrial and sanctuary edge before diving toward the International City interchange. The Centrepoint branch, splitting off the Red Line, finally brings rail to the eastern suburbs that have waited longest for it - City Centre Mirdif, Al Warqa, and the vast Dragon Mart retail complex. Both branches merge at International City 1 and continue as one line through Silicon Oasis to the university cluster at Academic City. For hundreds of thousands of residents in these districts, 2029 is the year the car stops being the only option.
The engineering, in brief
Half of the line’s 30 km runs in bored tunnel and half on elevated viaduct, which is why the construction reads as two parallel efforts - tunnel-boring machines grinding out the underground core while segmental viaducts rise along the elevated branches. The two headline structures are both about scale: International City 1, the Y-junction, is being built as a 44,000-square-metre underground box engineered for 350,000 passengers a day - larger in footprint than many airport terminals - and Dubai Creek Harbour’s Emaar Properties Station rises 74 metres, taller than any metro station yet built anywhere, designed by SOM, the practice behind the Burj Khalifa. Systems, track and rolling-stock installation follow the civil works, with trial running the last milestone before the 9 September 2029 opening. We update the reported completion figure here whenever the RTA publishes a new one.
Fares, names and the things still to be confirmed
Two honest caveats. First, the station names are announced as planned and, on a network where naming-rights deals rename stations yearly, some may well change before - or after - opening; that is why every name on this page and across our site carries its history. Second, no separate Blue Line fare has been announced: it plugs into the same Nol zone system as the rest of the network, and we will publish each station’s zone assignment once the RTA confirms it. What is not in doubt is the effect on the two existing lines - Creek and Centrepoint, both quiet termini today, become interchanges, and the districts around all 14 new stations gain a rail address that Dubai’s property market tends to price in well before the first train runs.
Blue Line: your questions answered
When does the Dubai Metro Blue Line open?
September 9, 2029 - twenty years to the day after the original metro opened in 2009.
How far along is Blue Line construction?
Roughly 30% complete as reported mid-2026, with tunneling underway on the 15.5 km underground section and viaduct works on the elevated 14.5 km.
Which areas will the Blue Line serve?
Dubai Festival City, Dubai Creek Harbour, Ras Al Khor, International City, Dubai Silicon Oasis, Academic City, Mirdif, Al Warqa and Dragon Mart - the metro's first push east.
Where does the Blue Line connect to the current metro?
At Creek (Green Line) and Centrepoint (Red Line) - one branch from each, merging at International City 1.
What is special about International City 1 station?
It is the Y-junction of the line and will be the network's largest underground interchange: 44,000+ square metres, designed for 350,000 passengers a day.
What is the world's tallest metro station?
The Blue Line's Dubai Creek Harbour station (Emaar Properties Station) at 74 metres, designed by SOM - the architects of the Burj Khalifa.
How long is the Blue Line?
30 km: 15.5 km underground and 14.5 km elevated, with 14 stations (5 underground, 9 elevated).
Will Blue Line fares be different?
No separate fare system has been announced - it joins the same Nol zone model as the rest of the network. We will publish zone assignments when the RTA confirms them.
Are the Blue Line station names final?
They are announced as planned names and could change - Dubai station names shift regularly under naming-rights deals, which is why every name on this site carries its rename history.
Is the Blue Line the same as the Gold Line?
No. Blue = east (2029, 14 stations, Creek/Centrepoint branches). Gold = coastal corridor (2032, 18 stations, Al Ghubaiba to Jumeirah Golf Estates, fully underground).
Facts from RTA and Dubai Media Office reporting. Related: Gold Line tracker · metro news.