World Wings: Sheikh Zayed Road

Sheikh Zayed Road United Arab Emirates

E 11 is a major highway in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The longest road in the country, it runs from Al-Silah in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi to Ras Al Khaimah, roughly following the UAE’s coastline along the Persian Gulf. The road is the main artery through several emirate capitals, taking on different names along the way — Sheikh Maktoum Bin Rashid Road and Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Road in Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Zayed Road in Dubai, and Sheikh Muhammad bin Salem Road in Ras Al Khaimah. The Dubai–Abu Dhabi section of E 11 links the UAE’s two largest cities. Proposed by the rulers of Abu Dhabi and Dubai to Sheikh Zayed in the early 1970s, it was approved in 1971 and completed in 1980. The highway begins near Maqta Bridge in Abu Dhabi and becomes Sheikh Zayed Road as it enters Dubai. In Dubai, E 11 is known as Sheikh Zayed Road and serves as the city’s main thoroughfare. It runs parallel to the coast from the Trade Centre Roundabout to the border with Abu Dhabi Emirate, about 55 kilometres away at Jebel Ali. Previously called Defence Road, a 30‑kilometre stretch was widened between 1993 and 1998, and the road was renamed in honour of the then President of the UAE, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, by Sheikh Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the then Ruler of Dubai. Sheikh Zayed Road is lined with many of Dubai’s best‑known skyscrapers, including Emirates Towers, and connects major new developments such as Palm Jumeirah and Dubai Marina. Much of the Dubai section carries seven to eight lanes in each direction, with most of the Red Line of the Dubai Metro running alongside it. More recently, the construction of the Dubai Water Canal required the removal of a section of the road and the building of a new bridge to carry Sheikh Zayed Road over the canal.

Recommended airport

Dubai Intl (DXB)

Nearby destinations

Sheikh Zayed Road, United Arab Emirates

Sheikh Zayed Road United Arab Emirates