Construction on a new junction between National Theater and Emiri Diwan intersections off of the Corniche will begin tonight, Qatar’s public works authority has announced.

When finished in two months, the new intersection will ideally help ease congestion caused by motorists who cannot currently exit the Corniche from the long stretch of road between the Diwan and the National Theater.

With the new junction, drivers will be able to access Al Rumailah St. directly from the Corniche, or U-turn at that junction, Ashghal said.

Work is also underway to widen Al Rumailah St. to three lanes instead of two, the public works authority added.

As construction gets underway, temporary closures will take place on one lane of the Corniche at a time, and will only occur at night for a maximum two hours during delivery/unloading of materials.

Ashghal concluded:

“Plastic barriers will be put in place along the kerbstone of the median, which will reduce the width of the lane adjacent to the median by about 40 cm, however the lane will remain open for traffic.

There will also be a closure on one lane to install the electric cables for the new traffic light signal which also takes place during the night hours and on the weekend.”

Corniche works

The Corniche underwent a $55 million overhaul between 2013-2014, which included the conversion of several roundabouts into signalized junctions.

Much of the work was actually completed ahead of schedule, to the delight of motorists frustrated by construction-related delays.

However, last month Ashghal said it found damage to the top layer of asphalt on several parts of the Corniche, from the post office to the National Theater.

The public works authority said the contractor responsible for laying the asphalt in the first place would be replacing it over the next few days.

The move sparked complaints from residents who said that the revamp was shoddily done.

At the time, a Central Municipal Council (CMC) member cited a lack of loyalty from foreign companies as a major cause of quality control issues in Qatar.

However, though Ashghal did not name the contractor responsible for the asphalt damage, many of the companies involved on the Corniche overhaul project appear to be locally-based.

Thoughts?