A multibillion-dollar project in Saudi Arabia that could one day serve more than 3 million travelers daily has opened.
The Riyadh Metro, Saudi Arabia’s first underground railway system, is projected to initially accommodate 1.2 million passengers per day, with an eventual planned capacity of up to 3.6 million daily passengers.
The project, which features 85 stations across six lines, is being rolled out in phases. Among the first to partially open is the Blue Line, which is set to traverse north to south through downtown Riyadh.
The inauguration of the project comes as Saudi Arabia seeks to diversify its economy away from a reliance on oil exports.
According to developers, sustainability is a key focus of the project, with some stations powered by renewable energy. The Riyadh Metro is projected to significantly boost the city’s public transport usage, increasing its share from 2 percent to 18 percent by 2030, a news release said.
“The Riyadh Metro will transform travel in Saudi Arabia by offering a more sustainable and efficient mode of transportation for millions of people,” Darren Mort, the president of infrastructure business at Bechtel, one of the firms behind the project, said in the news release.
“The Riyadh Public Transport Project, which spans metro and bus networks, is the culmination of concerted efforts made by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, and the outcome of his visionary leadership,” said Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The crown prince chairs the Royal Commission for Riyadh City, which supervises development projects in the city.
Newsweek has contacted Bechtel for additional comment via contact form.
“Saudi Arabia is in dire need to diversify its economy by investing into non-oil sectors such as tourism, entertainment or sports,” Sebastian Sons, a senior researcher at the Center for Applied Research in Partnership with the Orient, previously told Newsweek.
Investment in large-scale construction projects was a cornerstone of this strategy, Sons said, and the Riyadh Metro is one of many megaprojects undertaken in the country. The first project for the country’s Neom megacity recently opened.
Known as Sindalah, the opening of the “luxury island destination” represented a significant milestone for the project, which has become the world’s biggest construction site.
A recent report from human rights organization ALQST warned that companies working with the biggest construction projects in Saudi Arabia, including U.S. firms, may face “political and reputational risks” as the projects contend with allegations of dangerous conditions and the abuse of migrant workers.
The report came amid allegations that thousands of migrant construction workers have died or gone missing since 2017.
Ref: Newsweek
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