Motorists heading to Hamad International Airport this weekend via E-Ring Road may need to leave extra time for their journeys, as Al Thumama junction will be closed for 36 hours.

The entire intersection of E-Ring Road and Najma St., which is by the Kahramaa Awareness Park, will close at midnight on Thursday, July 7.

It will re-open at midday on July 9, Ashghal said.

The closure is to allow for the final layer of asphalt to be laid on the road surface, the public works authority added in a statement today.

Work on the intersection has been going on for months, and are part of a multi-million riyal overhaul of two key routes in Doha’s Old Airport district.

The junction was previously scheduled to be fully open in spring this year.

Diversions

The closure of the busy intersection means traffic will be re-directed to other streets in the Old Airport area.

Commuters heading eastbound from Al Wakrah and F-Ring Road will be diverted via Al Thumama Street and Al Hudara St..

Motorists traveling out of town from E-Ring Road will be re-routed through Jaber Bin Hayyan St., Oqba bin Nafie St. and Al Rabab St.

Road improvements

Al Thumama intersection used to a roundabout, and its reconstruction into a signalized junction has been underway since October. The intersection partly re-opened to traffic in February.

It is one phase in a wider QR240 million project in the busy Najma/Old Airport area that involves widening roads, upgrading drainage networks, as well as creating pedestrian and cyclist paths, street lighting and landscaping.

The goal is to improve traffic flow and increase capacity in the area, which can get congested at peak times.

When the signal-controlled junction opens, it will have four lanes and three dedicated turn lanes in each direction on E-Ring Road, and three lanes and three dedicated turning lanes each way on Najma St., Ashghal said in a previous statement.

The wider project in the area is expected to take until the end of this year and will upgrade 3km of Najma St. and 3.3km of E- Ring Road.

Will this diversion affect you? Thoughts?