Pope Francis touched down in Abu Dhabi last night on February 3 – the start of his three-day historic visit to the UAE..

Several road closures have been announced by the Department of Transport in preparation for the Holy Mass held by Pope Francis on his last day in the UAE, on Tuesday, February 5. It is expected to be attended by 1350,000 people.

The Pope is in UAE from Monday February 3 to Wednesday February 5, 2019. His visit comes after an invitation was extended by Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince, during his visit to the Vatican in 2016.

ALSO READ: Everything you need to know about Pope Francis’ visit to Abu Dhabi

The announcement stated that Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Street and Saif Ghobash Street (map below) will be closed in both directions from 12am to 6pm on Tuesday, February 5.

The two main streets that will accessible on Abu Dhabi Island are the Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Street and Al Khaleej Al Arabi Street.

A complete truck ban was also announced on bridges entering Abu Dhabi Island from 6pm on Monday, February 4 to 6pm on Tuesday, February 5. The bridges affected are Musaffah Bridge, Maqta Bridge and Sheikh Zayed Bridge.

Parking as well on either of these streets will not be allowed. 

The decision comes in hopes to ease traffic congestion for the masses heading to Abu Dhabi to attend the Papal Mass.

Around 1,000 buses will transport the Papal mass ticket holders from Dubai to Abu Dhabi leaving from various pick-up points in Dubai as early as 11pm on February 4. Buses from other Emirates will be departing early to reach the venue in good time as well.

The faithful will then have to walk about 2km as early as 3am on February 5 to the Zayed Sports Stadium where gates are expected to open at 5pm (that’s about five hours before the Papal Mass is expected to begin.)

Ticket holders received a day off so that they can attend the once in a lifetime mass and certain schools have also received a day off on Tuesday, February 5, while some schools in Dubai and Sharjah received a two-day off from Monday, February 4 to Tuesday, February 5.

– For more about Abu Dhabi straight to your newsfeed, follow us on Facebook. 

Images: Getty and Department of Transport Twitter