Rail in Saudi

Saudi Arabia inaugurates Haramain high-speed line | International Railway Journal Haramain = Two Holy Mosques, in Mecca and Medina.

The 453km line connects the holy cities of Mecca and Medina via Jeddah and King Abdullah Economic City, with a short branch serving King Abdul Aziz International Airport in Jeddah, the principal point of entry for Hajj pilgrims.

King Abdullah Economic City is near Rabigh.

Haramain train open to public from next Thursday - Saudi Gazette - October 11

lpetrich wrote:Saudi Arabia inaugurates Haramain high-speed line | International Railway Journal Haramain = Two Holy Mosques, in Mecca and Medina.

The 453km line connects the holy cities of Mecca and Medina via Jeddah and King Abdullah Economic City, with a short branch serving King Abdul Aziz International Airport in Jeddah, the principal point of entry for Hajj pilgrims.

King Abdullah Economic City is near Rabigh.

Haramain train open to public from next Thursday - Saudi Gazette - October 11

I wonder if non-Muslims will be able to travel? I suspect not.

Mecca - Wikitravel -- the whole city is Muslims-only.
Medina - Wikitravel -- the central part of the city is Muslims-only, though non-Muslims can visit the rest of the city.

Most of the rest of Saudi Arabia seems open to non-Muslims, however, and I'm sure that this Mecca - Medina train will also be.

Most of the rest of Saudi Arabia seems open to non-Muslims, however, and I'm sure that this Mecca - Medina train will also be.

The last time I was in the east of Saudi Arabia one could travel from Taif to Jeddah - by taxi - only with a permit from the local government. One had to show it to the police before setting out.

There is a special road built for non-Muslim travellers to avoid Makkah. From it one can not see the city - though at night the lights can be seen reflected in the sky. It carries traffic from Jeddah to Taif - a major traffic route. Whether the current regime feels the same way is unknown to me but it is a possible factor in the planning. Nowadays planning of new railways sometimes puts stations well outside the urban areas - I am thinking of the new rail line in Kenya, where the Nairobi station is no longer inside the city - which actually grew up around the original rail station. Perhaps, if the Makkah station will be outside the city, non-Muslims will be allowed to travel but if it is near enough to see the city I doubt if non-muslims will be allowed.

george matthews wrote:Nowadays planning of new railways sometimes puts stations well outside the urban areas - I am thinking of the new rail line in Kenya, where the Nairobi station is no longer inside the city - which actually grew up around the original rail station

Very true. The same is true of the new station in Mombasa. But funnily enough the first place that came to my mind was the USA, where many of the original fine old railway stations on prime land in the middle of towns have been closed down and small new stations constructed in cheap industrial areas on the outskirts. In UK a number of new stations with the word "Parkway" in the name have been constructed outside the cities as a "park and ride" option.

johnthefireman wrote:

george matthews wrote:Nowadays planning of new railways sometimes puts stations well outside the urban areas - I am thinking of the new rail line in Kenya, where the Nairobi station is no longer inside the city - which actually grew up around the original rail station

Very true. The same is true of the new station in Mombasa. But funnily enough the first place that came to my mind was the USA, where many of the original fine old railway stations on prime land in the middle of towns have been closed down and small new stations constructed in cheap industrial areas on the outskirts. In UK a number of new stations with the word "Parkway" in the name have been constructed outside the cities as a "park and ride" option.

I was once staying in a hotel at a town in NY state. I can't remember which it was, possibly Rochester. The old station was visible in the centre of town, but it was occupied at the base by a Greyhound station, and above, there was a road where the tracks once were. The actual station is now a taxi ride outside the town. I think there will come a time when these out of town stations will be seen to be a bad mistake - when oil products have to be severely restricted for climate reasons.

GM - Going off topic briefly:
The city you describe I believe is Syracuse...Rochester's Amtrak station is at the same site near Downtown which is always where it was.
Syracuse was moved from East Syracuse (a suburb) to NW of Downtown SYR with a relocated station in recent years...MACTRAXX

Yes, it was Syracuse. It's expensive to build a rail station in an existing city, which is why new stations are seldom built inside cities. But Syracuse previously had a station conveniently in the city and now doesn't.

My experiences of Saudi are not pleasurable to remember. I am glad that they are now getting some railways, but I do wonder whether they will be useful. The train to Makkah will certainly be a useful addition, and should see several trains a day packed in all carriages, a much more convenient way of reaching the city, and taking many vehicles off the main road, and the air pollution.

I have travelled on the previous only rail line from Dammam to the oasis at Hofuf.

Haramain high-speed carries 250,000 passengers in first four months | International Railway Journal
Opened: Oct 17, 2018
Length: 449 km between Mecca and Medina
Load factor: 82%
Punctuality rate: 93%
Trips per week: 40, planned to go much higher
Train max speed: 300 km/h

Pretty good ridership. Around 2000 per day , if there is 40 trains a week that is 333 per train . Unless there is something wrong with my maths , which is entirely possible.

David Benton wrote:Pretty good ridership. Around 2000 per day , if there is 40 trains a week that is 333 per train . Unless there is something wrong with my maths , which is entirely possible.

The numbers of potential passengers on the route Jeddah-Makkah are very large at the times of major demand for pilgrimage. A few walk as sign of religious devotion. Most went by road vehicles, depending on their status - some by bus or smaller vehicle. The railway should syphon off much of the road congestion during the times of peak demand to travel. I suspect that demand for travel will vary a lot between times of mass pilgrimage and the rest of the year. Perhaps they will run fewer trains in slack times, or possibly shorter trains.

Haramain high-speed ridership exceeds expectations | International Railway Journal

The crown jewel in Saudi Arabia’s recent railway developments, the high-speed line has carried more than 250,000 passengers since opening, performing above expectations. Load factors of 82% have been achieved from the more than 450 trips that have taken place while services are operating at 93% punctuality.

...
“The slab track we are using can become covered in sand and we are working hard to minimise the impact on the railway,” Al Harbi says. “We have been simulating the movement of sand so we can react accordingly. We have managed to overcome certain problems of the desert so far and we are keen to ensure that the 93% punctuality rate is maintained.”

It should go up to 60 trains per week this quarter (the 2nd), 100 in the second half of the year, and 200 in 2020, with an eventual target of 500.

Seems like another high-speed-rail success.

Video of Pilgrim traffic.
https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/ ... index.html

https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/travel/article/ ... index.html

A review of Saudi HSR:

The high-speed train that zooms across the Saudi desert
...
Buying tickets is straightforward. The gold-and-white HHR Train app is in both English and Arabic. Although many Saudis solely use the Islamic calendar, toggling to the English option will switch to the Gregorian calendar. Keep your passport handy, as you will need to fill in your ID information before clicking "pay." On CNN's recent visit, no one asked to see passports or other documents in order to board the train.

On a typical weekday in early 2023, an economy ticket between Jeddah Al-Suleimanyah and the King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC, pronounced like "kaish") cost 57.50 Saudi riyals, (about $15.30), while a business class seat was 97.75 riyals (about $26).
...
The stations along the route are efficient, modern, and comfortable. They're also beautiful. Both Jeddah and KAEC stations -- which are nearly identical -- are said to be inspired by diamonds. Designed by UK architects Foster + Partners, they have sharp, crisp angles, sleek black walls, and small starlike carvings in the ceiling that allow different variations of light to filter in throughout the day.
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Even on a short journey like the one from Jeddah to KAEC, business class passengers are entitled to a full meal service. This consists of hummus, a few rounds of pita bread, a chocolate chip muffin, a fruit cup, a croissant, and a choice between apple juice and water. It is served by a uniformed attendant out of an airplane-style beverage cart.

There are also small seat-back TVs with limited viewing options -- on this trip: Paw Patrol, Formula E racing or an Islamic sermon.
...

The April 2023 issue of the British "The Railway Magazine" has quite a detailed report on Saudi railways, including a lot of photos of locos and rolling stock.