Its spectacular location hosts 1.4 million residents, along almost 100 kms of coastline. Its linear sprawling form continues to push Muscat westward as citizens redeem their birth right land plots to build their own homes.
Nestled between the Hajar Mountains and the azure waters of the Arabian sea in the north eastern corner of Oman, Muscat is undoubtedly one of the Middle East’s hidden gems.
The extensive resulting sprawl is located on land prone to cyclones and worsening climate change risks, demanding effective governance with resilient solutions.
These challenges have not gone unrecognised by the Omani government.
In recent years it has launched its 2040 Vision, a 20-year sustainable growth plan that calls for doubling of non-oil revenues, double the amount of water availability for every resident and increasing renewable energy to 40%.
Recognising Muscat’s pivotal role in meeting Oman’s 2040 Vision, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Planning commissioned a technical team led by Broadway Malyan to prepare the Greater Muscat Structure Plan (GMSP) - a blueprint for enhanced governance, future growth and resilient development of liveable and sustainable neighbourhoods that support the national aim for Oman to become a net zero economy by 2050.
Muscat has much to recommend it, from its spectacular location to its rich historical assets, but the low cost of fuel in the region means it is a city with an unhealthy relationship with the motor car. Per capita, Muscat is the most car dependant city in the world where 93% of all trips are done by car compared to 38% in London, 70% in Bangkok and 80% in Dubai.
This is partly cultural but also a case of necessity. Many of Muscat’s employment hubs are located away from where people live while a sparse and fragmented transit system provides the only alternative to travel by car. With the rising cost of energy and the need to decarbonise our cities in the face of the climate emergency, this is no longer sustainable.
The Greater Muscat Structure Plan will contain policies that connects jobs with communities, clustering synergetic economic and employment functions and matching employment with residential growth.
It will prioritise more compact development by increasing population densities at the better-connected parts of the city to arrest the current sprawl while encouraging the development of well-defined, serviced urban districts with a clear purpose, identity and relationship to their setting.
Evidence from cities such as Hamburg, Malmo and Stockholm show that denser development underpins sustainable growth and increased productivity as workers move closer to their jobs.
Muscat’s low-density urban form is slated to incorporate over 54km of mass transit lines, where it has scope to build new dense mixed-use development on government-owned and under-utilised land, bringing a third of its population within a 20-minute walk of a transit or feeder line stop.
The Structure Plan will leverage the city’s natural and heritage assets while taking advantage of its stunning coastline to attract tourists, foreign investors and regional talent to underpin this historic capital city’s transformation to become a unique destination.
The city’s network of 12 wadi systems that link the mountains with the city and its coast provide can enhance the open space network to present Greater Muscat as a lush green and civilised oasis in contrast with its harsh arid context.
A six-month programme of city-wide consultation and engagement has allowed the emerging concepts and strategies to reflect the aspirational thoughts and opinions of 7,000 residents and a variety of stakeholders, while the work gathers pace and profile.
The result will be a plan that delivers an exciting blueprint for a city that really is like no other.
*Broadway Malyan is set to deliver the final Greater Muscat Structure Plan in Autumn 2023.
