Al Khaleej Street Tunnel Opens: What It Means for Deira Property

A new tunnel for Deira’s waterfront

Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) opened the Al Khaleej Street Tunnel on Sunday, 8 November 2026. According to the Government of Dubai Media Office, the tunnel is 1,650 metres long and runs from the end of the Infinity Bridge ramp in Deira to the junction of Al Khaleej Street and Al Wuheida Street. It has three lanes in each direction and a combined capacity of 12,000 vehicles per hour.

For drivers, this means free-flowing traffic between Infinity Bridge and Deira, in both directions. For anyone watching the property market, the bigger story is where the tunnel leads. It sits inside the Al Shindagha Corridor Improvement Project, one of Dubai’s largest road programmes. That corridor serves older Deira and Bur Dubai neighbourhoods and several large waterfront projects, including Dubai Islands, Dubai Waterfront, Dubai Maritime City and Port Rashid.

Below we summarise what RTA announced, which areas are affected, what is still being built, and how buyers and investors can think about it. Everything here comes from official RTA and Dubai Media Office statements. We do not forecast prices or rents.

What RTA opened on 8 November

The main facts from the official announcement:

• Length: 1,650 metres, from the Infinity Bridge ramp in Deira to the Al Khaleej Street and Al Wuheida Street intersection.
• Lanes: three in each direction.
• Capacity: 12,000 vehicles per hour in total.
• Related works: the roundabouts on Cairo Street and Al Wuheida Street are being turned into signal-controlled junctions. Traffic improvements are being made along Cairo Street. The bridge ramp from Dubai Islands now connects to the new tunnel towards Al Mamzar.

Mattar Al Tayer, Director General and Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of RTA, called the tunnel “a significant addition to Deira’s road network”. He described Deira as “an area experiencing rapid urban and commercial expansion”. He named new residential and tourism destinations in Abu Hail, Al Wuheida and Al Mamzar, and major developments such as Dubai Islands, Waterfront Market and Al Hamriya Port.

RTA also shared construction figures. The project has recorded nearly 11 million work hours with no injuries reported. A total of 2,200 engineers, technicians and workers worked on site, supported by 350 pieces of equipment. About 77% of the material dug out for the tunnel, roughly 522,000 cubic metres, has been reused in other RTA and government projects.

The bigger picture: Al Shindagha Corridor

The tunnel is one piece of a much larger plan. RTA describes the Al Shindagha Corridor Development Project as follows:

• It runs about 13 km along Sheikh Rashid Road, Al Mina Street, Al Khaleej Street and Cairo Street.
• It includes the development of 15 intersections.
• It is expected to serve around one million people.
• Once the corridor is complete, RTA says journey time along it will fall from 1 hour 44 minutes to 16 minutes by 2030.

RTA completed the Bur Dubai side of the corridor in 2025. It is now building a new bridge across Dubai Creek between Infinity Bridge and the Port Rashid redevelopment area. This will give Dubai Islands a direct link to Bur Dubai. According to RTA, the bridge will be:

• about 1,425 metres long, with four lanes in each direction and capacity for around 16,000 vehicles per hour;
• 18.5 metres above the water, with a 75-metre navigation channel so vessels can pass underneath;
• fitted with a pedestrian and cycling track and two lifts, plus about 2,000 metres of new roads at ground level on both the Dubai Islands and Bur Dubai sides.

RTA has not given an opening date for the bridge in this announcement. We therefore treat it as a work in progress, not a finished link.

Which neighbourhoods are affected

Official statements name the following areas and projects as served by the tunnel and the wider corridor:

1. Deira waterfront and Al Khaleej Street. The tunnel removes a busy stretch of surface traffic between Infinity Bridge and Al Wuheida Street.
2. Abu Hail, Al Wuheida and Al Mamzar. RTA calls these new residential and tourism destinations. The tunnel now carries traffic from the Dubai Islands ramp towards Al Mamzar.
3. Dubai Islands. It is already linked to Deira by the new ramp and will gain a direct route to Bur Dubai once the new Creek bridge is finished.
4. Waterfront Market and Al Hamriya Port. Both are named by RTA as major developments along the corridor.
5. Dubai Maritime City and Port Rashid. On the Bur Dubai side, these are part of the same corridor. You can read more in our Dubai Maritime City area guide.

Why road projects matter to property buyers

Infrastructure does not set prices by itself. Still, buyers in Dubai often look at access when they compare areas. Three practical points stand out.

1. Shorter, more reliable commutes. A free-flowing tunnel can make daily trips more predictable for residents of Deira, Al Mamzar and Dubai Islands. That is useful for owner-occupiers and for tenants deciding where to live. RTA’s own target is a 16-minute journey along the full corridor by 2030, down from 104 minutes. Keep in mind that this figure refers to the completed corridor, not to the tunnel alone.

2. A link between old and new Dubai. Deira and Bur Dubai are Dubai’s historic trading districts. Dubai Islands, Port Rashid and Dubai Maritime City are newer waterfront projects. RTA says the corridor is meant to strengthen “connectivity between existing neighbourhoods and new urban developments”. For buyers, that may widen the choice of homes within a reasonable drive of the Creek, the airport and Downtown.

3. Planning fits a wider pattern. The tunnel follows other recent government moves that touch older districts. Earlier this month, Dubai Municipality updated planning rules for Al Satwa (we covered this in our Al Satwa planning regulations article). Both reflect a long-term push to renew established areas. That push is set out in Dubai’s urban master plan, which we explain in our article on the Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan.

What it does not tell you: the tunnel does not guarantee higher prices or rents in any building. Values depend on the specific project, its quality, its handover date, the supply nearby and the wider market.

The Dubai Tunnels art project

The tunnel will also become a work of public art under RTA’s Dubai Tunnels initiative. Emirati artist Maryam Al Hathboor designed a mural of Dubai’s skyline in a style inspired by banknote illustrations. It will run along the tunnel walls and show new landmarks, including Infinity Bridge. RTA says the mosaic uses 35 million pieces, chosen for durability and a long service life. It is a small detail, but it shows how Dubai treats infrastructure as part of the city’s image.

What buyers and investors should do next

If the Deira waterfront, Dubai Islands or the Port Rashid side interests you, here is a practical checklist:

• Check the exact location. Ask how a building connects to Al Khaleej Street, Cairo Street, Infinity Bridge or Sheikh Rashid Road. A tunnel nearby does not mean every building has easy access to it.
• Separate what is open from what is planned. The tunnel is open. The new Creek bridge to Bur Dubai is under construction, and the 16-minute figure is a 2030 target for the full corridor.
• Verify the project. For off-plan homes, confirm the developer, the escrow account and the registered completion date with the Dubai Land Department (DLD), for example through the Dubai REST app.
• Use official data. DLD publishes transaction data on its open-data pages. Compare recent sales in the exact building, not only area averages. For context on the ready-home segment, see our October 2026 ready homes report.
• Think about the holding period. Major corridors are built in phases over several years. Make sure your plans fit that timeline.
• Residency questions. Some buyers ask about UAE Golden Visa options. Eligibility depends on the property value and the current rules of the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP), so always check with ICP directly.

All prices on our site are in AED. If you think in US dollars, a rough guide is 1 USD = 3.6725 AED (approximate, at the UAE dirham’s fixed rate).

Conclusion

The Al Khaleej Street Tunnel is a clear, finished step in RTA’s Al Shindagha Corridor plan. It gives Deira a high-capacity link to Infinity Bridge and improves the route towards Al Mamzar and Dubai Islands. The next big milestone is the new Creek bridge between Dubai Islands and Bur Dubai. For property seekers, the right approach is to treat this as better access, not as a promise of returns, and to judge each building on its own facts.

You can browse all properties, read about the DubaiNow Ejari service if you plan to rent out a unit, or contact the Mina Prime Properties team to talk through areas along the corridor.

Sources

• Government of Dubai Media Office: RTA opens 1650-Metre Al Khaleej Street Tunnel with Three Lanes in Each Direction (8 November 2026)
• Roads and Transport Authority: Opening the Al Khaleej Street Tunnel and Al Khaleej Street Tunnel project page
• Emirates News Agency (WAM): RTA opens 1,650-metre Al Khaleej Street Tunnel
• Dubai Land Department: Real estate open data

This article is general information based on the official sources above, checked on 10 November 2026. It is not financial or legal advice. Property values, rents and returns are not guaranteed. Project timelines can change. Verify details with RTA, the developer and the Dubai Land Department before you decide.