Rail transport in Jordan
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Jordan has a total of 507 km of narrow gauge railways (1,050 mm (3 ft 5+11⁄32 in)) as of 2008.
Railway companies in Jordan are:
- Hedjaz Jordan Railway, a direct descendant of the Ottoman Hejaz railway: The only passenger railway currently operating in Jordan, connecting Amman to Damascus in Syria, and passing through Zarqa and Mafraq. It is narrow gauge; the rest of the Syrian network uses 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge.
- Aqaba Railway Corporation transporting phosphates to the port of Aqaba
Plans
[edit]In the 2000s, Jordanian government began acquiring land for new rail routes. Following a study by BNP Paribas, three routes were planned, which were expected to be tendered later in 2010. The three routes were:[1]
- From the Syrian border, via Zarqa, to the Saudi border; replacing part of the Hejaz Railway;
- Connecting the first line to Aqaba, and from Mafraq to Irbid, replacing another part of the Hedjaz railway;
- A link to the Iraqi border.
However, in late 2010, the government announced an economic relief package and following the 2011 Jordanian protests it was decided to reduce the expected three-year capital investment plan in the national railway network by 72 percent, partly to fund the relief package.[2] Therefore, it is unclear when the railways expansion plan will be carried out.[needs update]
There are also plans for a light rail system operating between Amman and Zarqa, and a metro line in Amman.
Currently, two connected but non-contiguously operated sections of the Hedjaz Railway exist:
- from Amman in Jordan to Syria, as the "Hedjaz Jordan Railway".
- from phosphate mines near Ma'an to the Gulf of Aqaba as the "Aqaba Railway".
In August 2011, the Jordanian government approved the construction of the railway from Aqaba to the Iraqi border (near Trebil). The Iraqis in the meantime started the construction of the line from the border to their current railhead at Ramadi.[3]
There are plans for a Aqaba-Ma'an railway modernization with the Saudi Jordanian Investment Fund.
In 2019 they signed a memorandum of understanding with the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority to invest 500 million JD (around $700 million) to redevelop the Aqaba-Ma'an railway alongside building a dry port in Ma'an.[4][5] It plans to upgrade the trains 1050mm built in 1975 to 1435mm.[5]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Railway Gazette: Ambitious strategy ready to start". Retrieved 2010-09-10.
- ^ Obeidat, Omar (14 March 2011). "Budget deficit prompts cuts in three-year development plan". The Jordan Times. Archived from the original on 3 September 2012. Retrieved 9 April 2011.
- ^ Construction begins on 500km Jordan-Iraq railway, Construction Week, August 24, 2011
- ^ Release, Press. "Saudi Jordanian Investment Fund showcases achievements and future plans". www.zawya.com. Retrieved 2024-06-15.
- ^ a b "Jordanian ambitions, Saudi funds: A look at Saudi investments in Jordan". Middle East Institute. Retrieved 2024-06-15.