Qatar Railways, the state rail company, has awarded design and build contracts on four major sections for Phase 1 of the Doha Metro, totaling $8.4 billion (QR30 billion) and to be operational before 2020.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, Qatar Rail said construction is due to begin later this year and includes the previously-announced Red Line North project, major stations at Msheireb and Education City, as well as the Red Line South and Green Line.

The company had initially stated last year that construction would begin in early 2013, but then delayed awarding tenders by some six months, saying it needed more time to evaluate the bids.

Speaking at the World Stadium Congress in Doha on Tuesday, Qatar Rail commercial manager Stephen Lines said some 26 tunnel-boring machines are being employed to complete the ambition project on time, which will ultimately include 48 metro stations at a length of 131km.

The four components of the Doha Metro’s first phase include:

• Red Line North (RLN): This line will run from Msheireb to the Doha Golf Course via West Bay, with seven underground stations. Twin 13-km tunnels will be built at an average depth of 20 meters below ground. 
• Red Line South (RLS): This line will run from Msheireb to the upcoming Hamad International Airport (previously New Doha International Airport) through six stations and 13.8km tunnels. 
• Green Line (GRN): This line runs between Msheireb and Al Rayyan Stadium west of Doha by way of eight underground stations and 16.6km tunnels. 
• Major Stations (MS): The two major hubs being built for the Doha Metro are the Msheireb underground station and the Education City interchange, although few details are available.

Here’s the Metro map provided to us, highlighting the Red, Green and Gold lines:

Qatar Rail says the project features “sustainable design that consumes fewer resources, generates less waste, costs less to operate, and achieves a reduced carbon footprint.”

It also touts that Qatari companies have been awarded contracts in each component of the project.

Check out these overview maps for more detail on the phase 1 layout (Click full screen for better viewing):

Thoughts?