Doha Metro..The Perfect Way To Travel Between The 2022 World Cup Stadiums

Transportation and communications have received special attention in the preparation plans for Qatar's hosting of the 2022 World Cup. All preparations have been completed with the approaching date of the tournament, which will start on November 20.

The Doha Metro is emerging as the best and fastest means of internal transportation in Qatar, which will make it the first choice for fans in the World Cup, whether in moving between the tournament stadiums or linking between residences and sites of events and activities accompanying the tournament.

In the following report, Al Jazeera Net monitors all the details of the Doha Metro that will serve Qatar's guests in the World Cup, especially with regard to how to deal with this important means of mass transportation, and the extent of its role in the largest sporting event in the Middle East.

Doha metro lines

The Doha Metro network, whose construction idea began in 2009,  consists of 3 lines, the Red Line, the Green Line, and the Golden Line. The network includes 37 stations that make up the first phase of the Doha Metro. The second phase is expected to be completed in 2026 with the addition of a blue line to the network. 

The Red Line

 Doha Metro stations inaugurated the Red Line in May 2019. It extends 40 km from Al-Wakra in the south to Lusail in the north. It consists of 18 stations, most notably Lusail Station, which is located on the campus of the stadium that will host the 2022 World Cup final.

The Red Line includes two interchange stations between the metro lines, namely Al Bida Station, from which it is possible to switch to the Green Line, and Msheireb Station, which is the main station from which all lines can be switched.

The Green Line

It opened in December 2019, and extends for 22 km, from Mansoura station in the east to Riffa station in the west. It consists of 11 stations, the most important of which are Education City and Mall of Qatar, which are located near Education City Stadium and Ahmed bin Ali Stadium.

The Golden Line

It opened in November 2019 and extends from Ras Abu Aboud Station in the east to Al Azizia Station in the west. It consists of 11 stations, the most important of which are the National Museum Station and Ras Abu Aboud, which are close to Stadium 974.

Connecting 5 stadiums

The Doha Metro provides a distinguished service for fans wishing to attend more than one match on the same day during the World Cup, which has not happened in any World Cup throughout history. The metro network connects 5 stadiums, with stations near the stadiums of Education City, Al Rayyan, Ras Abu Aboud Lusail, and Khalifa International Airport. Transportation services are available to other stadiums, starting from the nearest metro station.

The World Cup stadiums are characterized by the proximity of distances. The longest distance between two stadiums is about 75 km, which is the distance between the Al Bayt stadiums in Al Khor and Al Janoub Stadium in Al Wakra, while the shortest distance is 6 km between the Education City and Ahmed Bin Ali stadiums.

Doha metro prices and timings

The Doha Metro starts its flights daily from six in the morning until 11 at night, from Saturday to Wednesday of each week, while the flights extend on Thursday to 12 at night. The hours are reduced on Friday of each week to start at two in the afternoon until 12 at night. These are the times expected to be extended during the World Cup, as happened during the Arab Cup late last year.

Economy class passengers can buy a ticket for a single trip at a price of 2 Qatari riyals (one dollar equals 3.65 riyals) or buy a one-day ticket at 6 riyals, while the price of a gold-class ticket was set at 10 riyals or a daily flight card worth 30 Qatari riyals. The metro was designed in 3 classes, gold, family, and economy. This meets the needs of all passengers.

The temporary card for the Doha Metro can be obtained from ticket vending machines available in all stations, while golden cards can be purchased from the Golden Club offices located in all stations. There are also retailers licensed to sell metro cards, and they are available in shopping malls such as Carrefour, Al Meera, Lulu, Family Food Center, and Jumbo.

Equipped stations

Doha Metro stations are fully air-conditioned and have a heritage look using traditional elements of Islamic and Qatari art. Each station contains a police station, a Golden Club office, a customer service station, separate prayer areas for males and females, toilets for people with disabilities, and all stations are equipped with security cameras and a first aid room.

Metro assistance services

Doha Metro services will not be limited to underground trains but will extend to a fleet of buses that provide transportation to and from stations, including the "Metro Link" transfer service, which is a free transportation service that runs from and to the metro station, along with other areas, as well as providing taxis for passengers at discounted rates.

The "Metro Link" service is available in 21 stations, and the "Metro Express" service covers 6 stations in the vicinity of the West Bay, Unaizah, and Al Qassar areas, in addition to providing "park and move" parking around the stations.

Smart apps

Another service provided by Qatar Railways to provide passengers with easy access to metro services is the launch of an application that enables passengers to register and link travel cards, which provides information about the entire system map, live operating stations, and metro timings.

It is expected that the "Rail" company will issue a digital guide to provide information about metro transportation, the stations, and the lines that must be taken to reach the stadiums. This aim at helping all fans to attend the matches, similar to what happened in the Arab Cup, in addition to the QR code through which the fan can access all days of the tournament to choose the day of the match he intends to attend and download his ticket in order to know the route of the "Doha Metro" to easily reach the stadium.

2.5 million passengers in the Arab Cup

Since the start of its operations in May 2019, the Doha Metro has played a pivotal role in the success of hosting 8 major local, regional and international sports tournaments, most notably the Arab Cup, which was a mini-rehearsal for the World Cup, in light of the large public turnout that accompanied the tournament.

The percentage of metro ticket sales during the Arab Cup amounted to more than two and a half million tickets, with an average of 130,000 passengers per day. That rate rose to 250,000 passengers during the National Day of the State of Qatar, which witnessed the holding of the Arab Cup final matches and the match to determine third place, according to Qatar Rail.

The number of Doha Metro train trips that were operated during the Arab Cup amounted to more than 50,000 trips, for a distance of 885,000 km, while the average time (the time of train) between each train and the other was two and a half minutes per line in each direction.