Passengers using the new Al Maktoum International Airport (DWC) in Dubai will enjoy shorter walking distances, thanks to a new underground train system.
Paul Griffiths, CEO of Dubai Airports, announced the plan during a session at the Arabian Travel Market on Wednesday. He said the train system is designed to reduce travel time across the massive airport.
Griffiths said, “The underground system will be very comprehensive and pretty quick to reduce travel distance. It is such a large site that it would be about a 20-minute journey time, and we have to make it fast, efficient and competitive in terms of circulation of transfer passengers.”
He explained that because the journey could take up to 20 minutes, the train would be seated to ensure passenger comfort.
The Dh128-billion airport, which will be the world’s largest once completed, is designed to offer passengers a more personal and smooth experience.
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Griffiths said the airport will include eight smaller “airports within one” to help reduce crowding and walking.
He also described a future where travelers will be able to sit in glass-covered lounges and see their planes through clear canopies.
He said, “We could actually project on the glass which aircraft is going where so you know that that’s your plane to New York.”
Artificial intelligence will be used to manage airport operations and help passengers move easily through the terminals.
Griffiths confirmed that all operations from the current Dubai International Airport (DXB) will move to DWC over the next 10 years.
“We’re right up against Sharjah in the north, so it will spread the city out and actually make it perhaps a little easier than the traffic problems that we’ve got today,” he said.
Earlier this week, Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman of Dubai Airports, announced that contracts for DWC have already been awarded. The airport is expected to reshape air travel in the region.