In this article
Kooky
Builder of Shaka, the payment router that pays every agent their commission on closing date.
About Kooky and Shaka →Property developers in the United Arab Emirates are already looking at land along the Fourth Corridor, the 80 km road approved in September to link Sharjah, Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Khaleej Times reported on Sunday 4 October 2026 that one developer, Reportage Group, says it has acquired a site in Abu Dhabi near the route, and that a second, Pantheon, says it will keep assessing locations that the road brings within easier reach.
The road itself is not built, and no opening date has been published. What exists today is an approved project with a route, two phases and a cost for the first of them, and a handful of statements from developers about what they intend to do. This article sets out both, and keeps them apart: what the authorities have announced about the corridor, and what two companies say they plan around it.
Road figures as reported by Zawya, Gulf Business and Khaleej Times on 16 and 17 September 2026; unit count as stated by Reportage Group to Khaleej Times, 4 October 2026.
What the developers have said
The most concrete statement comes from Andrea Nucera, group managing director of Reportage Group. According to Khaleej Times, he said the company has acquired a site in Abu Dhabi near the corridor's route, covering almost 750,000 square metres, with about 3,800 units in the design phase. He said the project would most probably come to market in 2027 or 2028. That is the company's own expectation, given while the scheme is still being designed, and not a launch date.
Dividing the two figures gives a little under 200 square metres of land for each planned unit. It is a rough measure of the whole plot, roads and open space included, and not a plot size or a unit size published by the developer. Khaleej Times does not give the price paid for the site or its exact location, and does not say what kind of units are planned.
Related readMinneapolis apartment permits fell to 300 units as rents hit a highMr Nucera was speaking at the launch of two other Reportage projects, Verso and Epoque, in Meydan. He used the occasion to describe a market that has become more selective. Khaleej Times reports him saying that conditions have changed completely over the past 18 months, and that the period when a developer could launch almost anything and find strong demand is over. "We came back to a normal reality," he said, as the newspaper quotes him. He added that the speed of sales in the UAE remains exceptional compared with other countries where he has worked.
The second voice is Kalpesh Kinariwala, chairman of Pantheon. He did not announce a land purchase. What he told Khaleej Times is that infrastructure is central to how the company looks at real estate, because connections decide where people choose to live, work and invest. In his view the main effect of a road such as this one is to change how accessible an area is, and so what can be done with it. He said Pantheon will continue to look beyond established locations as Dubai grows to the east and the south, and will go on evaluating places where better connections can support residential and mixed-use development.
Khaleej Times also reports, as the general view of the developers it spoke to, that demand for homes continues across the country, supported by new residents and a growing citizen population, and that the road should make locations that were once less convenient more attractive to residents, businesses and investors.
Related readBuying off the plan in New South Wales: what the law gives a buyerWhat Dubai approved in September
The corridor was announced on Wednesday 16 September 2026. Zawya reported that day that the project was approved by Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Executive Council, and that its report was based on an infographic released by the Government of Dubai Media Office. Gulf Business, also on 16 September, reported Sheikh Hamdan as saying the approval followed directives from Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum to increase investment in infrastructure, and as describing the project as part of a continued commitment to infrastructure as a driver of economic growth.
The road runs for about 80 km between a road in Sharjah and a road in Abu Dhabi, crossing Dubai on the way. The press spells the two end points in slightly different ways: Zawya and Gulf Business write Al Shanouf Road and Al Faya Road, while Khaleej Times, in an explainer published on 17 September, writes Al Shnouf Road and Al Fayah Road. They are the same two roads.
The name has a simple explanation. Khaleej Times says it will be the fourth strategic road axis linking the emirates, after Sheikh Zayed Road and Al Ittihad Road, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Road, and Emirates Road. Zawya lists the same three existing corridors.
Across the whole project the reports agree on 72 bridges and 17 tunnels, and Khaleej Times adds 45 stormwater drainage culverts. The stated capacity is up to 24,000 vehicles an hour in both directions. The corridor is also to connect with Al Maktoum International Airport and with Etihad Rail, according to all three outlets.
Related readSingapore's Canberra Drive EC site draws 13 bids and a record land priceTwo phases, measured
The project is split at Dubai-Al Ain Road. The first phase covers the northern part, from Sharjah down to that road; the second continues from it to Abu Dhabi. The Khaleej Times explainer of 17 September gives the fullest breakdown, and the table below follows it.
| Measure | Phase 1 | Phase 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Route | Sharjah to Dubai-Al Ain Road | Dubai-Al Ain Road to Abu Dhabi |
| Length | About 30 km | 50 km |
| Journey time | 35 minutes to 14, down 60% | 50 minutes to 24, down 52% |
| Surface roads | About 55 lane-km | About 190 lane-km |
| Tunnels | 2.5 km | 3.5 km |
| Bridges and ramps | 21 km | 157 km |
| Estimated cost | About AED 3.5 billion | Not published |
Khaleej Times, 17 September 2026. The cost of the first phase is also given by Zawya and Gulf Business, 16 September 2026.
The journey-time figures are projections published with the project, for a road that does not exist yet. On the first phase the saving is 21 minutes; on the second it is 26 minutes. The headline figure used in the first reports, a cut of up to 60 per cent, is the first-phase number. The second phase, which is the longer one, is put at 52 per cent.
The first phase also includes work on roads that are already there. Khaleej Times reports that four major intersections will be upgraded, and that Dubai-Al Ain Road will be widened from three to four lanes in each direction between Emirates Road and Lehbab Road.
Two details are reported differently from one outlet to the next. On the width of the road, Gulf Business and the first Khaleej Times report of 16 September give 12 lanes in each direction, while the Khaleej Times explainer a day later gives 12 lanes in total across both directions for each phase. On the people served, Zawya and Gulf Business give about 3.1 million, or more than 3.1 million, for the project, while Khaleej Times gives about 600,000 for the first phase and 3.1 million for the second. The official text was not available to settle either point, so both versions are given here.
Related readSingapore's Government Land Sales programme: how the two lists workWhere the road runs
For anyone who sells or lets property, the route matters more than the engineering. The Khaleej Times explainer lists the areas the corridor is to serve inside Dubai: Madinat Latifa, Madinat Hind, Al Yalayis, Al Awir and Dubailand. It also passes Al Maktoum International Airport, the Al Marmoom reserve, the Desert Wildlife Reserve and the route of Etihad Rail.
Mr Kinariwala's remark about Dubai expanding eastward and southward, reported by Khaleej Times, describes the same geography. He also pointed out that the corridor connects to Dubai-Al Ain Road and supports access to the areas around Al Maktoum International Airport.
The road has a second purpose that has little to do with housing. Khaleej Times attributes to the Roads and Transport Authority the aim of taking through traffic, and trucks in particular, away from urban areas, easing pressure on the existing corridors and improving traffic flow and road safety. The same report lists support for logistics and commercial transport, for future urban expansion, and for stronger links between Dubai's roads and the federal network among the stated aims.
Connectivity and rents: the caution from a developer
The developers quoted are not promising that a road will lift values by itself, and one of them says so plainly. According to Khaleej Times, Mr Kinariwala said better connections tend to bring more demand, because people become willing to live or work in areas they once saw as inconvenient, and that this could support rental growth as communities mature and as amenities, jobs and services arrive.
He then set the limit. Infrastructure alone does not determine rental levels, he said; the quality of what is built, the amount of supply, the amenities and the depth of demand all count as well. He added that developers should identify emerging growth corridors early and build communities that make use of the new connections.
Related readSingapore: Lucerne Grand 61% sold as The Serra Residences previewsRead together with Mr Nucera's account of a market that has returned to normal, the message from both companies is measured. Each is an opinion from a developer with an interest in the outcome, reported by one newspaper. Neither is a forecast of prices or rents for any district on the route, and the Khaleej Times report of 4 October carries no price, sales or transaction figures for the area.
The corridor has no construction dates so far
None of the reports of 16 and 17 September gives a start date or a completion date for either phase, and the cost of the second phase is not disclosed. Reportage has not said what it paid for its Abu Dhabi site.
What brokers can and cannot say today
A new road on a map is an easy thing to put in a sales conversation, so it helps to be exact about what is on the record.
On the record is the approval of the project on 16 September 2026, the route between Sharjah and Abu Dhabi by way of Dubai-Al Ain Road, the split into two phases of about 30 km and 50 km, the estimated cost of about AED 3.5 billion for the first phase, and the projected journey times. Also on the record is the list of Dubai districts that the road is to serve, as published by Khaleej Times.
Not on the record is when work starts, when either phase opens, or what the second phase will cost. A journey of 14 minutes instead of 35 is therefore a design target and not something a resident can rely on at a known date.
On the developers' side, one company has said it bought land and is designing about 3,800 units for a launch it places in 2027 or 2028, and another has said it will keep evaluating opportunities beyond established locations. No project on the corridor has been launched, named or priced in the reports read for this article. Mr Nucera's remark that his company's offer and prices remain in line with its existing approach, also reported by Khaleej Times, concerns Reportage in general and not the Abu Dhabi site.
What comes next
The next facts to watch for are the ones the September announcement left open: a construction timetable for the first phase, a cost and a timetable for the second, and confirmation of the number of lanes and of the population each phase is expected to serve. On the property side, the Reportage scheme is the only one with figures attached, and its developer has given 2027 or 2028 as the likely window for bringing it to market. Until then the corridor is an approved plan, with developers starting to take positions along it.
Kooky, from Shaka
Kooky edits Agents Estate and builds Shaka, the payment router he made for real estate professionals. One payment comes in, and every agent, agency and party in the deal receives their signed share on closing date.
