Al Gharrafa Park with region's first AC pedestrian-jogging tracks opened

Al Gharrafa Park, with the region's first ever air-conditioned pedestrian and jogging tracks, was opened on Thursday by the Supervisory Committee of Beautification of Roads and Public Places in Qatar.

Students with special needs from The Shafallah Center participated in the event and planted trees in the park, as part of 'Qatar Beautification and Our Kids Planting Trees' campaign to 'Plant Million trees', implemented by the Committee in co-operation with the Ministry of Municipality.The dignitaries at the opening included engineer Yousef Abdul Rahman al-Emadi, director of Projects Affairs at Ashghal; engineer Muhammad Arqoub al-Khalidi, chairman of the Supervisory Committee of Beautification of Roads and Public Places; Muhammad al-Khoury, director of Public Parks Department at the Ministry of Municipality; Jaber Hassan al-Jaber, director of Al Rayyan Municipality; Mubarak Farish al-Salem, Central Municipal Council member for District 15; and Dr Mohamed Telfat, director of the Department of Therapeutic Services at The Shafallah Center.Al Gharrafa Park, spread across about 50,000sqm, can cater to nearly 3,000 visitors daily from residents in multiple areas, including Al Gharrafa, Garrafat Al-Rayyan, Izghawa, Al Kharaitiyat, Al Luqta and Al-Rayyan. To encourage exercise, Ashghal has provided an integrated cooling and air conditioning system for the 657m pedestrian and jogging tracks throughout the park, ensuring temperature between 26C and 28C. Work is underway to patent the innovative system that reduces the operational cost by more than 50%.The system also relied on a design that uses environmental elements such as some types of trees and climber vines, which in turn work to circulate cool air and reduce its leakage to maintain cold air inside the tracks, reducing temperature by 10C without mechanical intervention, in addition to installing specially modified air conditioners based on internal studies carried out by Ashghal.The Islamic Mashrabiya-style structures are installed to allow air circulation from air conditioners. A solar panel cover along the corridor generates electricity and provides a plant fence at a suitable height. Further, fast-growing climber veins cover the pedestrian tracks from all directions.The colourful rubberised floors help reducing absorption of heat. Solar panels generate electricity to operate air conditioners if the ambient temperature does not exceed 37C, without the need to use conventional air conditioners, thus saving 60% of electricity.Engineer al-Emadi pointed out that Ashghal is constructing parks, green spaces and planting trees in various parts of the country for environmental sustainability, one of the important pillars of Qatar National Development Strategy to achieve Qatar National Vision 2030."Al Gharrafa Park is a central park like Rawdat Al-Hamamam Park, Rawdat Al-Khail Park and Umm Al-Seneem Park, serving many areas, besides providing vast green spaces and various amenities, also including a 639m cycling track, kids play areas, facilities for people with special needs, and yards for economic activities," he said.Engineer al-Khalidi observed that Al Gharrafa Park is designed to be a tourist and recreational destination to encourage visitors to follow a healthy lifestyle. Engineer al-Tamimi, indicated that the project falls within the framework of Ashghal’s efforts to improve public service facilities in different regions in Qatar.Engineer Yasmine al-Sheikh, project design manager, said that soothing colours chosen for the pedestrian path would give visitors a feeling of calm and serenity, while bright colours of the cycling path and children’s games areas imparts an ambience of freshness and vitality.Engineer Fahad Muhammad al-Otaibi, head of Western Regions Section at Roads Projects Department, Ashghal, recalled that the first phase of the project included development of irrigation network lines serving Al Gharrafa Park and the surrounding area.Dr Telfat expressed his gratitude for inviting The Shafallah Center’s students to participate in the events accompanying the opening of Al Gharrafa Park, and stressed that such initiatives contribute to promoting greater inclusion of people with special needs, helping them to develop their potentials and social aspect of their personality.Al Gharrafa Park, which overlooks Umm Al-Zubair Street, has 343 trees, two exercise areas with fitness equipment, and two children’s play areas for age groups from 2-5 years and 6-12 years, as well as children with special needs. The park has four restaurant kiosks, a bicycle rental kiosk, green wall on the facades of male and female toilet buildings, bicycle parking, as well as garden furniture from locally manufactured fibre-concrete benches, garbage cans, shades and drinking water basins. The locally-made materials used in the works include cycling tracks, pavement interlock, shot plastered, granite floors, and light poles. The park also provides environmental benefits with two-star green buildings, planting local trees including wild Ghaff, Samar and Sidra, which contribute to wind and dust management, and help reducing heat and air and noise pollution.The works carried out within the scope of Road Improvement Works Project in Western Regions of Road Projects Department consisted of constructing a 3.2km long treated irrigation water network to cover needs of Al Gharrafa Park and the green spaces in the area.The works in second phase included development and construction of roads surrounding Al Gharrafa Park with a total length of 1.5km, including improvement of Wadi Al Ghosn Street parallel to Umm Al Zebar Street and construction of three streets perpendicular to Wadi Al Ghosn Street.The project provides many benefits, including sustainable use of drainage water recycled after treatment and used to irrigate green areas on roadsides and parks. The new roads also improve traffic capacity, and facilitate access to the new park.The road improvement works project in the western regions is part of a work plan to improve roads and infrastructure networks services in several areas in Al Gharrafa and Al Rayyan.The Supervisory Committee of Beautification of Roads and Public Places in Qatar works in co-ordination with several ministries and other entities such as Ministry of Transport and Communications, Ministry of Culture and Sports, Qatar Museums Authority, Qatar Railway Company, and Private Engineering Bureau among others. This Committee is responsible for five major tasks including construction of central public parks, provision of dedicated lanes for pedestrians and bicycles, development of the Doha Corniche, development of Central Doha, and increasing trees and green areas.