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1 month to Etihad Rail in Dubai: Property prices triple, excited residents watch trials
Families living near the new Etihad Rail train station in Dubai say it is changing everything — from property values to weekend trips
- PUBLISHED: Thu 3 Sept 2026, 6:00 AM UPDATED: Thu 3 Sept 2026, 10:20 AM
For the last several months, 7-year-old Nael has been looking out of his apartment window in Al Furjan and excitedly watching the progress of the Etihad Rail station in Dubai, along with his parents Jithin and Natasha. Now, with less than a month to go for the station open, his mother Natasha said that he is excited about the prospect of riding the train all the way to Abu Dhabi, where her sister stays.
“We’ve been keeping track of the progress from when they first started putting up the pillars and doing the trial runs, right up to the station finally opening so close to us very soon,” she said. “My sister stays in Abu Dhabi, and I visit her at least once in 2 weeks now. Now we are hopeful that we can take the train to go see my sister more often. Nael is looking forward to being greeted at the train station.”
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The much-awaited Dubai station set to open on September 30, and no one is more excited about it than those who live at its “doorstep." One such individual is Jumeirah Golf Estates resident Anjali Suman. She has been living in JGE for 8 years, and at first, her friends would remark how far away she was from the city. “Now, we are literally at the centre of the most exciting projects in Dubai,” she said.
Muhammed Farooq has also been living in JGE for over a year. Last week, while returning home using the metro, he got a sneak peek of the bridge that will connect the metro station to the Etihad Rail. “I got really excited to see that the bridge is almost fully completed,” he said. “The only thing I could think of was traveling through the mountains and watching breathtaking scenes, like in Europe.”
Property prices tripled
Anjali, who works in real estate, said that when she first moved into JGE, the price of a villa of 7000sqm was around Dh6 million. Today, the same villa is selling for around Dh18 million. “The prices in the area have tripled,” she said. “Easy access to the Red Line of Dubai Metro, Etihad Rail and the upcoming Golden Line are all great selling points. JGE is one of the most popular communities today.”
Natasha has seen a similar effect in Al Furjan as well. “We have kept an eye on the property and rental prices here and it is definitely on the rise as compared to seven years ago, when we moved here,” she said. “With more people choosing areas close to public transport access, Furjan is very popular. Also, because it is so close to Abu Dhabi, we have a lot of families in the community who work in Abu Dhabi and but live here. The train would be a huge relief for such people.”
Beyond property values, Natasha has noticed another trend emerging in Al Furjan. “There are a lot of Air BnBs and serviced apartments in this area now,” she said. “With the opening of Etihad Rail, we see these numbers going up. A lot of tourists and short term visitors are bound to pick this area for convenience and access.”
Traffic and connectivity
Some tenants of the area are worried about the increase in traffic once Etihad Rail opens. “Traffic around our area is something we are looking at with a bit of disappointment,” admitted Natasha. “We already see a lot of people opting for Al Furjan because of metro connectivity and proximity to Abu Dhabi. I am pretty sure it will go up more once Etihad Rail opens.”
However, some have a different view. Muhammed said that for this year’s Eid holidays, he went to Fujairah and got stuck in traffic on his way back. “I am looking forward to making that trip the next holiday season in the comfort of the train,” he said.
Anjali said that the inter-emirate connectivity was something that she was looking forward to. “Whether we want to go to Sharjah, Fujairah or Abu Dhabi, the train services will offer a great alternative,” she said. “I see that as one of the biggest attractions of living in JGE — better connectivity all around.”
