A nationwide plan including the renovation, revamp and expansion of key junctions, and the building of new main roads to connect all parts of Bahrain is in the pipeline, said a top government official.

'Among the new projects currently being planned are an interchange on Shaikh Khalifa bin Salman Highway and a corridor connecting the upcoming Northern Town,' said Works Ministry roads adviser Abdul Nabi Abdulla Al Sabah.

He was speaking to our sister publication the Gulf Daily News on the sidelines of the International Road Federation's (IRF) third Middle East Regional Congress and Exhibition at the Gulf Hotel in Bahrain.

'This corridor is proposed to take off near the Burgerland Roundabout in Budaiya. A consultant on the detailed design of the project will be appointed soon.'

Al Sabah said another major project to connect the upcoming Mina Salman Interchange to the North Manama Causeway is under construction.

Once it is completed motorists will have uninterrupted access to the Northern Town from the Mina Salman crossing.

'This will consist of building underpasses or flyovers at the Al Najma Club crossing near Exhibition Avenue, the Juffair crossing and the Diplomatic Area crossroads. This will also mean direct access for those coming from the Khalifa Bin Salman Port and going to the Northern Town.'

The completion of the Mina Salman Interchange also means there will be non-stop traffic flow from King Fahad Causeway up to the Dry Dock crossing.

'There is a plan, however, to reorganise the Dry Dock crossing and build underpasses and flyovers,' said Al Sabah. 'This will ensure free and uninterrupted flow of traffic to the port.'

This came as authorities recorded 478,193 registered cars in Bahrain, which has doubled in nine years.

Al Sabah was speaking on the sidelines of the event which concluded yesterday and was held under the patronage of Deputy Prime Minister Shaikh Khalid bin Abdulla Al Khalifa.

It was organised by the Works Ministry in collaboration with Bahrain Society of Engineers and the IRF.

Meanwhile, new projects are also planned for Bahrain's capital as the North Manama Ring Road will be built to connect the area near the Al Farooq Junction, former GCC (Pearl) Roundabout, to the North Manama Causeway.

'The Juffair Orbital Ring Road, also being proposed to be built, will considerably ease traffic congestion in that area,' said Al Sabah.

He revealed details of a new interchange project that is in the design stage and will be located at the Salmabad crossing on Shaikh Salman Highway.

'This will, once again, ensure smooth flow of traffic on the highway, which has already greatly benefited from the Isa Town Interchange.'

The building of the Alba and Nuwaidrat interchanges will ensure traffic from the soon-to-be-built Bahrain-Qatar Causeway will ease into the country.

'In the future, there could be plans to build several other interchange projects, linking the Umm Al Hassam Interchange, through to the Mina Salman Interchange and Khalifa Bin Salman Port,” he said. – TradeArabia News Service