Qatar Rail has recently launched a new training centre for workers aimed at strengthening health and safety standards on its worksites
As many as 15,000 Qatar Rail workers are set to benefit from a first-of-its-kind health and safety training centre in the region.
The training centre is ‘Premium level’ accredited by UK’s Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH). The employees who undergo the training are among the key personnel in construction of the Doha Metro project.
Green Line project director Jassim al-Ansari said the training centre reflected the importance that Qatar Rail placed on operating to the highest international standards of occupational health and safety.
“The information and support we transmit through this initiative provides the tools to encourage a culture of occupational health and safety, and helps safeguard our employees, partners and the wider public,” he added.
The Green Line training centre offers training courses on health and safety across all levels which can be up to five days in duration.
It incorporates a range of workshops from tunnelling and construction inductions, to working in confined spaces, first aid, risk assessment, vehicle and plant movement, working at heights, electrical safety and fire safety among many more. Training is given by a team of accredited trainers along with Arabic and Indian interpreters.
As part of Qatar Rail’s continuous improvement approach, the Green Line training intends to get accreditation from the National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health (NEBOSH) later this year in order to deliver level five and six training courses.
“We are proud of the Green Line training centre because it provides international standards of training to workers which we see as a crucial step in giving the country a world class transportation system,” said al-Ansari.
“Doha Metro is a flagship project for Qatar and we want to ensure that all those evolved in its delivery are given the very best training and support,” he added.
The first phase of the Doha Metro project is expected to be complete in the fourth quarter of 2019, while completion of the Lusail Tram is set for 2020.
By 2030, all the three networks — Doha Metro, Lusail Tram and the long-distance rail, which will link Qatar with the GCC Rail network — are expected to be complete.
With the completion of the first phase of the Doha Metro and Lusail Tram, Qatar Rail expects to offer 600,000 passenger trips per day by 2021.
By then, 37 metro stations are expected to be complete, with an average journey time of three minutes between adjacent stations.
