The Saudi Landbridge Project is a planned
railway
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a p ...
project which forms part of the Saudi Railways Expansion Programme.
Intended mainly for freight,
the railway will connect
Jeddah
Jeddah ( ), also spelled Jedda, Jiddah or Jidda ( ; ar, , Jidda, ), is a city in the Hejaz region of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) and the country's commercial center. Established in the 6th century BC as a fishing village, Jeddah's pro ...
on the
Red Sea
The Red Sea ( ar, البحر الأحمر - بحر القلزم, translit=Modern: al-Baḥr al-ʾAḥmar, Medieval: Baḥr al-Qulzum; or ; Coptic: ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϩⲁϩ ''Phiom Enhah'' or ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϣⲁⲣⲓ ''Phiom ǹšari''; ...
coast with the Saudi Arabian capital
Riyadh
Riyadh (, ar, الرياض, 'ar-Riyāḍ, lit.: 'The Gardens' Najdi pronunciation: ), formerly known as Hajr al-Yamamah, is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyadh Province and the centre of the ...
.
[ Saudi Landbridge Project]
. Retrieved 2008-01-09. The existing 450 km line between Riyadh and Dammam will be upgraded,
and a second 115 km new line is planned to connect
Dammam
Dammam ( ar, الدمّام ') is the fifth-most populous city in Saudi Arabia after Riyadh, Jeddah, Mecca, and Medina. It is the capital of the Eastern Province. With a total population of 1,252,523 as of 2020. The judicial and administrative ...
with
Jubail
Jubail ( ar, الجبيل, ''Al Jubayl'') is a city in the Eastern province on the Persian Gulf coast of Saudi Arabia, with a total population of 684,531 as of 2021. It is home to the largest industrial city in the world. It is also home to t ...
on the
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a mediterranean sea in Western Asia. The bo ...
.
The newly constructed lines will be single track, but the infrastructure (including bridges and tunnels) will be designed to permit a future upgrade to dual track.
The project is part of the Saudi vision 2030 that aims at being a logistic hub that connects the three contracts together.
History
On 21 April 2008 the Tarabot consortium of seven Saudi companies and Asciano of Australia, was named as preferred bidder for the 50-year build, own the concession for the Landbridge project, with financial close planned within 12 months.
Completion was planned for 2010, however financial close could not be agreed.
On 10 October 2011 the government decided the project would go ahead, but as a state project.
The cost was put at up to USD 7 billion.
In July 2013, the contract for the design of the 958-kilometre Jeddah-Riyadh section of the project was awarded. The Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) awarded the contract to prepare the detailed design of the project to
Italferr in August 2015. At the Middle East Rail 2017 conference and exhibition in Dubai on 7 March 2017, SRO President Rumaih Al Rumaih announced that the detailed design for the project had been completed. The project will be developed on a build, operate and transfer (BOT) basis.
See also
*
Haramain high-speed railway
*
Gulf Railway
External links
Saudi Railways OrganizationThe Landbridge-dedicated page on the Saudi Railways siteAn estimated route map
References
Proposed rail infrastructure in Saudi Arabia
{{SaudiArabia-transport-stub