Saudi Arabia awards $22.5 bln contracts to build Riyadh metro

[Abingdonboy]

22 Billions just for metro ??? these arabs are Freaking Rich !

All metros cost this kind of crazy money- anywhere in the world.

 

[Saif al-Arab]

Riyadh Metro: World’s largest public transport system currently under development – in pictures​

September 1, 2015

The system, which will have six lines covering 176 kilometres, supported by a bus network of 1,150 kilometres, is due to be completed by the end of 2018.

Workers walk at the site of the under-construction Riyadh Metro rail system in the Saudi capital Riyadh on August 26, 2015. The project will carry electric, driverless trains. Faisal Al Nasser / Reuters

Construction started in April 2014. Faisal Al Nasser / Reuters

Three foreign consortiums are building the metro, with France’s Alstom, Canada’s Bombardier and Germany’s Siemens among the major participants. Ahmed Farwan / AFP

Line 1 (Blue Line) will run from Olaya Street to Al Hayer Road. It will be 44km long and will cover 39 stations. Ahmed Farwan / AFP

Line 2 (Green Line) will connect King Abdullah Road to the King Fahad Stadum. It will have 14 stations and be 22km long. Ahmed Farwan / AFP

Line 3 (Red Line) will run from Madina Al Munawra to Rahman Al Awal Road. It will be the longest line of the metro, at 45km. Ahmed Farwan / AFP

Line 4 (Orange Line) will run from the King Khaled International Airport to the new King Abdullah Financial District (KAFD). Ahmed Farwan / AFP

Line 5 (Yellow Line) will start from the King Abdul Aziz Road. It will be 26km long and have 26 stations. Ahmed Farwan / AFP​

 

[Saif al-Arab]

Line 6 (Purple Line) will connect Abdul Rahman bin Ouf Street to the Shaikh Hassan bin Hussain bin Ali Street. It will be 30km long and will feature nine stations. Ahmed Farwan / AFP

It is hoped that the metro will reduce traffic on the city’s busy streets. Ahmed Farwan / AFP

Riyadh’s population of nearly 7 million is forecast to increase to 11 million by 2030. Ahmed Farwan / AFP

Workers walk at the site of the under-construction Riyadh Metro rail system. Faisal Al Nasser / Reuters​

All metros cost this kind of crazy money- anywhere in the world.

Regardless of that the GCC does not lack money. We can afford to spend the necessary money on the many huge present and future infrastructural projects.

 

[Saif al-Arab]

مسار طريق الملك عبدالله

​

 

[Saif al-Arab]

An excellent video showing the work and progress so far

​

Congratulations to our resident Najdis @Full Moon @JUBA and the remaining sizable gang.

 

[Saif al-Arab]

 

[The Sandman]

Too bad shifted to Dammam 3 years back >.<

 

[somebozo]

Heard the work on metro is going to be delayed and part of it will be privatized too...

 

[Saif al-Arab]

Heard the work on metro is going to be delayed and part of it will be privatized too...

Only rumors so far. Work being delayed is a normal procedure. As long as that means everything working as it should be from day 1 then I am fine with that. More privatization is the best thing that can happen to KSA and the GCC as a whole. We need much more of that.

Damn it, Khobar and Madina (my cities) deserve a metro too

Not from Riyadh either. It seems like the Najdis on PDF are in minority just like in reality.

Madinah is Madinah and Khobar is a great and every underrated city. Massive potential for tourism. Great people and food as well. One of the best parts of the Eastern Province IMO.

Nothing like Hijaz and the Southern regions though.

 

[Arabian Stallion]

Giant Leap Forward

Riyadh Metro’s Green Line tunneling work completed​

Jun 10, 2016

​

Mishal Al-Otaibi

RIYADH Metro project took a giant leap forward on Wednesday night as tunneling work on its Line 5 (Green Line) was completed Wednesday evening during a visit to the project by Emir of Riyadh Prince Faisal Bin Bandar and Minister of Transport Suleiman Abdullah Al-Hamdan.

Line 5 is one of the three lines being constructed by FAST Consortium — one of three international consortia commissioned to build the Riyadh Metro Project’s six lines.

Prince Faisal, who is also Chairman of the Arriyadh Development Authority (ADA), said: “We are proud of the accomplished works in Riyadh Rail System.

Till now, 36 percent of the project has been accomplished. God willing, the project will be completed within the specified time, after two years and several months.”

“Riyadh Metro Rail Project is one of the pioneering national projects, which will have a clearly positive impact on the development of the city. The project will play a major role in attracting well-qualified and trained Saudis,” he said.

On arrival at the Green Line station site, the emir was briefed on the machinery and technologies used at the site. During the visit, the Emir went into the tunnel via a temporary lift to inspect it firsthand.

The emir and other officials also were able to see Giant Tunnel Boring Machine (GTBM), known as San’ah, tunneling into the wall in the final section of the Green Line.

Earlier, a second GTBM, known as Dhafrah, completed tunneling work on the southern part of Line 5.

The completed and connected tunnel runs for a full 12.16 km from the north of Riyadh to the city center.

The emir also toured one of the metro’s trains, comprising two coaches, and was briefed on the internal and external designs.

FAST Consortium is commissioned to build the Yellow, Green, and Purple lines — 33km of viaducts, 22k m of underground and 9 km of at-grade.

The Green Line runs underground within a bored tunnel along King Abdulaziz Road, one of the main arteries running through Riyadh.

The length of the line is 13 km and it features 11 deep underground stations, in addition to two transfer stations with the Red and Blue Lines.

In addition to the announcement on the end of tunnel excavation work, a full-size mock-up of the Riyadh Metropolis trains manufactured by Alstom was also unveiled on Wednesday. The event also marks the kick-off of the construction by Alstom of the track works, an important milestone for the project. The works will commence within an at-grade section of the Yellow Line, and will be the first tracks to be installed throughout the Riyadh Metro project.

In 2013, Alstom and its consortium FAST were awarded a contract to supply three metro lines totaling a length of approximately 64 km. Alstom is supplying a fully integrated metro system which includes: 69 Metropolis Trains, Urbalis signaling, the energy recovery system Hesop as well as tracks.

http://saudigazette.com.sa/saudi-arabia/giant-leap-forward/

Congratulations to the people of Riyadh. I wonder when other cities in KSA will follow suit?

 

[Arabian Stallion]

Saudi Arabia is building the largest urban transit system ever made from scratch​

Dana Varinsky
May 19, 2016, 3:53 PM

Zaha Hadid Architects​

Riyadh, the capital city of Saudi Arabia, boasts a population of over six million. But as of now, it has no public transportation system.

That's about to change. By the end of 2018, the city is expected to open the biggest urban mass transit system that's ever been created from scratch.

The new network, which is currently under construction, will be comprised of six metro lines that connect 85 stations and span nearly 110 miles of track. A brand new bus system is being built and implemented simultaneously.

Saudi officials approved the plan in 2012 after population grown forecasts for Riyadh suggested a 50% increase by 2035.

To create the system, the Saudi government awarded contracts to a variety of contracting and engineering companies from all over the world. The largest contract, worth a whopping $10 billion, was given to Bechtel, a U.S.-based firm specializing in mega-projects. (You may recognize their work from England's Channel Tunnel, the Bay Area's BART system or Athens' Metro.) According to Fortune, Bechtel's Riyadh project is the biggest lump-sum civil engineering contract that's ever been given to a single team.

Bechtel, with the help of a consortium that includes Almabani General Contractors, the Consolidated Contractors Company and Siemans, is in charge of the two most complicated lines of the system's six. Together, the group is responsible for the entire design and construction process, cars, signals, wiring and all. The nearly 40 miles of track are currently being built underneath central Riyadh and include 39 stations.

To build the system, Bechtel is using powerful tunnel boring machines, which weigh 1,000 tons and are called Mneefah after the horse ridden by Saudi Arabia's founding king. Each machine can tunnel through the earth at a rate of 325 feet per week, laying concrete panels as it goes.

The trains that run through those new tunnels will be equally state-of-the-art. The vehicles, created by Siemens, will be automatic and driverless, and can run up to 90 miles per hour. Each is fully air conditioned, as are the stations, which are also all equipped with WiFi. According to Saudi Arabia's High Commission for the development of Arriyadh, roughly 20% of the system's power will come from solar energy harvested from cells at the stations.

Train to be used in the Riyadh Metro at Siemens plant in Vienna​

The system's four main stations were each been designed by different architecture firms from around the world. Zaha Hadid Architects are behind the Financial District station, which has six levels - four above ground, two below - and connects three different lines.

The renderings of the station's futuristic platform (below) put older transit systems like New York City's subway to shame.

Zaha Hadid Architects
​

http://www.techinsider.io/saudi-ara...transit-system-ever-built-from-scratch-2016-5

From today:

 

[The Sandman]

I'm missing Riyadh now

 

[Hamartia Antidote]

Saudi Arabia is building the largest urban transit system ever made from scratch​

Dana Varinsky
May 19, 2016, 3:53 PM

Zaha Hadid Architects​

Riyadh, the capital city of Saudi Arabia, boasts a population of over six million. But as of now, it has no public transportation system.

That's about to change. By the end of 2018, the city is expected to open the biggest urban mass transit system that's ever been created from scratch.

The new network, which is currently under construction, will be comprised of six metro lines that connect 85 stations and span nearly 110 miles of track. A brand new bus system is being built and implemented simultaneously.

Saudi officials approved the plan in 2012 after population grown forecasts for Riyadh suggested a 50% increase by 2035.

To create the system, the Saudi government awarded contracts to a variety of contracting and engineering companies from all over the world. The largest contract, worth a whopping $10 billion, was given to Bechtel, a U.S.-based firm specializing in mega-projects. (You may recognize their work from England's Channel Tunnel, the Bay Area's BART system or Athens' Metro.) According to Fortune, Bechtel's Riyadh project is the biggest lump-sum civil engineering contract that's ever been given to a single team.

Bechtel, with the help of a consortium that includes Almabani General Contractors, the Consolidated Contractors Company and Siemans, is in charge of the two most complicated lines of the system's six. Together, the group is responsible for the entire design and construction process, cars, signals, wiring and all. The nearly 40 miles of track are currently being built underneath central Riyadh and include 39 stations.

To build the system, Bechtel is using powerful tunnel boring machines, which weigh 1,000 tons and are called Mneefah after the horse ridden by Saudi Arabia's founding king. Each machine can tunnel through the earth at a rate of 325 feet per week, laying concrete panels as it goes.

The trains that run through those new tunnels will be equally state-of-the-art. The vehicles, created by Siemens, will be automatic and driverless, and can run up to 90 miles per hour. Each is fully air conditioned, as are the stations, which are also all equipped with WiFi. According to Saudi Arabia's High Commission for the development of Arriyadh, roughly 20% of the system's power will come from solar energy harvested from cells at the stations.

Train to be used in the Riyadh Metro at Siemens plant in Vienna​

The system's four main stations were each been designed by different architecture firms from around the world. Zaha Hadid Architects are behind the Financial District station, which has six levels - four above ground, two below - and connects three different lines.

The renderings of the station's futuristic platform (below) put older transit systems like New York City's subway to shame.

Zaha Hadid Architects
​

http://www.techinsider.io/saudi-ara...transit-system-ever-built-from-scratch-2016-5

From today:

No Chinese construction companies?

 

[The Sandman]

Where do you live now if I may ask? Sharqiya?

Yes Dammam

 

[Al-Andalus]

Change between May 2015 and September 2016.