The roads around the under-construction National Museum of Qatar have been redeveloped and widened to improve traffic flow and ease some of the congestion on the Corniche, the nation’s public works authority has said.

The work comes ahead of the tentative 2016 opening of the museum, which is located near the junction of the Corniche and Ras Abou Aboud Street.

Under the QR79 million redevelopment project, which is part of Ashghal’s local roads and drainage program, the surrounding roads were widened from one lane to two lanes in each direction and new entrances and exits to the museum have been created.

Additional street lighting, pedestrian crossings and cycle paths have also been added to the nearby roads, and utilities such as electricity, telecommunications lines and drinking water have been upgraded, Ashghal said in a statement.

A wastewater system has also been added, which will harvest storm water for use in irrigation, as landscaping works in the surrounding area is ongoing.

Last summer, a spokesperson for Qatar Museums said the National Museum is expected to open in 2016.

Museum progress

Once construction on the museum’s structure is complete, a further six months are needed for cement “off-gassing,” which allows for the release of emissions trapped in the structure. Fit-out of the interior would take a further year, a spokesperson previously told Doha News.

The 40,000 sq meter structure was designed by renowned French architect Jean Nouvel to resemble a desert rose growing out of the ground.

When complete, it will include 8,000 sq meters of permanent exhibition space and a further 2,000 sq meters for temporary, rotating exhibitions. There will also be two cafes, a restaurant, a shop and research laboratories, according to details on the architect’s firm’s website.

QM has previously said that the facility would represent the “past, present and future of Qatar.”

Speaking earlier this year at Georgetown University in Qatar, QM Chairperson Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad Al Thani said that part of the museum’s remit would be to capture some of the oral history of Qatar, which has not previously been written down, Gulf Times reported.

The museum also previously said it would accept donations of items for display from members of the community.

Last summer, it announced that its collection would include pieces of jewelry donated by Sheikha Maryam bint Mohammed bin Hamad Al Thani on behalf of her late sister,  Sheikha Aisha bint Mohammed bin Hamad Al Thani, who died last year.

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