ABU DHABI // The days of the automobile clogging the city's transportation infrastructure may be numbered if a comprehensive transport plan comes to fruition. Routes and stops for a metro system, high-speed rail, buses, trams and even water taxis are all linked in a transit network master plan drawn up by the Department of Transport (DoT). The Government is considering options for meeting future transport needs as the emirate continues to grow at a rapid rate. Solutions could include more motorways and congestion charges, but planners say mass transit will feature prominently when the surface transport master plan is released in February. Aldar Properties has already begun laying the groundwork for seven of 16 stations earmarked for a tram line at the Al Raha Beach development. Aldar had already planned for a tram, but has since meshed its ideas with the Government. Meanwhile, the developer and the DoT are reserving space for a tram loop and a metro on Yas Island, the future home of the Formula One Grand Prix. A network of tram lines is tentatively scheduled to open in 2015, while the metro is planned for 2020. A regional train service should be ready between 2020 and 2030, according to the DoT. Residents witnessed the first steps toward an integrated system this summer, when buses began operating on four routes in Abu Dhabi. The Government plans to have 21 routes operating by 2009. @email:mchung@thenational.ae Produced by Wm Srite / The National. Research by Lizette Hecke / The National