Dubai’s Metro system is set for more than a dash of colour in the coming months after UAE Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum announced on Twitter that all stations were to undergo a major transformation.

Citing the enormous amount of people who relay on the system which stretches from Jebel Ali all the way parallel with Sheikh Zayed Road until it reaches old town, Sheikh Mohammed said an agreement had been struck to turn them into museums of art and innovation.

Taking to Twitter, he told his 2.66million followers: “Today we launched a project that will transform Dubai metro stations into museums of art and innovation.”

He added: “With more than 130M visitors a year, we want Dubai metro stations to be the world’s biggest space for art, culture and history galleries.”

And in another tweet, His Highness concluded: “We want to inspire travelers and entertain them while on their way to fulfil their day-to-day duties. The purpose is to make commuting experience richer and more alive, a vision that art and culture will bring to life.”

The announcement comes as the home straight appears in sight for another important transport link, the Dubai Tram. Major junctions around Dubai Marina have no been crossed, and trials are well underway with the state-of-the-art carriages. A second stage is set for April.

Earlier this year, the long-awaited network ran the service without passengers from the depot at the Police Academy to Knowledge Village, the first of three ahead of what the Road and Transport Authority expect to be an official launch in November 2014.

In December, seven coaches arrived in the region from France, in what was the first significant step forward on the Dhs3 billion project which will connect parts of Dubai Marina, JBR, Media City to Mall of the Emirates and Madinat Jumeirah.

The tram is expected to carry about 27,000 riders per day at the start of operations in 2014, rising to 66,000 per day by 2020, along a route which extend 14.6 km. Passengers will be able to ride in gold class, while there will also be a dedicated carriage for women and children.