Saudi Arabia to spent $5.3bn to link Makkah-Mina with rail network

ISLAMABAD, Jan 11: Saudi Arabia is embarking on a plan to lay down a railway line connecting the Holy sites of Mina, Arafat and Muzdalifa with Makkah and Madina railways network. Minister for Religious Affairs Hamid Saeed Kazmi told APP here on Sunday that the Saudi officials informed him that work on the project will soon be initiated. 

According to Saudi Arabian Deputy Minister of Municipality and Rural Affairs, Habib Zain Al-Abdeen, the estimated cost of the project is 20 billion Saudi Riyals ($ 5.33 billion).

The project is aimed at reduce congestion around the Holy sites by cutting the number of buses in the area by 35 percent.

During the Hajj season, only buses are allowed to move within the Hajj zone, which includes Makkah, Mina, Arafat and Muzdalifa.

The network will link up with the planned Makkah-Medina Rail Link (MMRL), which will connect the two Holy cities with Jeddah, the gateway into Saudi Arabia for pilgrims.

Nearly 2.5 million pilgrims visit the two Holy cities during the Hajj season every year.

In addition, 7.5 million people, including two million in Ramazan alone, come for Umrah annually.

The MMRL aims to transport an estimated 10 million Umrah and Hajj pilgrims every year.

The project includes the construction of approximately 500 kilometres of high-speed electrified railway lines between the three cities.

The MMRL is part of a massive kingdom-wide railway project, which also involves the construction of 950 kilometres of new tracks between Riyadh and Jeddah, and another 115 kilometres of track between Dammam and Jubail. (APP)