Vision Magazine Online Issue 1

Jarat Lang, Senior Associate Planner at the UPC, says
that the UPC adopted a different planning approval
process to ensure the race day deadline could be met.
“We wanted to quickly approve the masterplan for
all the race day facilities and infrastructure, while
ensuring any long-term necessary infrastructure, such
as the routes and stations for a proposed metro line,
were in place,” explains Lang. “So we worked really
closely with Aldar with weekly dialogues.”
Al Dhiyebi says he was impressed with the UPC’s
attitude and approach. “They would sit down with us
in open workshops. We would place our problems and
concerns on the table and find solutions within that
same workshop. Had we gone through a traditional
planning approval process then we would still be
waiting for consent today.”
Al Dhiyebi has also been impressed with the positive
impact that the UPC is having in Abu Dhabi City and
the whole Emirate.
“The UPC interacts well with developers and it
understands that by working together we can achieve
more for Abu Dhabi. For instance, it even has a
website link for developers with useful information
available online including the Capital 2030 Plan and
the Development Review Process.
“The UPC has also adopted the attitude that you
must invest in infrastructure before undertaking
any development. For instance, the Sheikh Khalifa
Bridge and the 27 kilometre Shahama-Saadiyat
Highway were opened before developments on Yas
Island or Saadiyat Island were completed. This type
of infrastructure – roads, bridges, tunnels, power,
water, sewage, telecommunications etc – helps to
ensure that developments are future-proofed and
don’t become outdated due to inadequate transport
connections or infrastructure in 10 or 20 years time.”
Al Dhiyebi also praises other government departments
and utility companies, such as the Abu Dhabi
Municipality, Abu Dhabi Water & Electricity Authority,
Department of Transport, Abu Dhabi Police, Etisalat, Abu
Dhabi Tourism Authority and Abu Dhabi Motorsports
Management for helping to deliver the Formula One.
“For the first time, all of Abu Dhabi’s different
government authorities and agencies worked
together with the private sector to deliver a huge
project to a tight deadline. That was perhaps Yas
Island’s biggest success”.
Hearing the roar
of the F1 cars when
the lights turned green;
that was when I realised
that the race was really
happening and that we
had delivered Formula 1
to Abu Dhabi
Talal Al Dhiyebi,
Director of Planning and Infrastructure,
Aldar
ISSUE ONE - VISION MAGAZINE 23