Medina – Mecca railway line

Medina-Mecca
Haramain high-speed rail map
Route length:	449.2 km
Gauge :	1435 mm ( standard gauge )
Legend 0 Mecca 8.5 large depot 34.8 Depot 2 78.3 Jeddah 92.8 / 100.9 96.1 King Abdulaziz International Airport 125.4 Depot 3 190.3 King Abdullah Economic City 254.5 Depot 4 312.2 Depot 5 361.5 Depot 6 420.7 Depot 7 small depot 427.5 449.2 Medina

The Medina – Mecca Railway , also known as the Haramain Express high-speed line , is a high-speed line connecting the cities of Mecca , Jeddah and Medina in the west of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia . The date for the start of operations has been postponed several times. The first passengers left on October 11, 2018.

planning

program

The double-track line , electrified with single-phase alternating current with a voltage of 25 kV and a frequency of 60 Hertz , will be built over 449.2 kilometers (including the branch to King Abdulaziz International Airport (KAIA): 453 kilometers) in standard gauge of 1435 mm and operated electrically . The maximum permissible speed is 320 km / h. The track is equipped with ETCS Level 2 . It is primarily used for fast and safe transport of the Hajj and ʿUmra pilgrims between the cities. The construction of the route and the 36 Talgo trains cost around 6.7 billion euros. The client and operator is the Saudi Railway Organization . The maximum capacity of the route is 160,000 travelers per day and 50 million per year. This would require 23-hour operation at 10-minute intervals. In fact, around 3 million travelers are expected each year, mostly during Hajj.

The route will have five stations :

• Terminal station Mecca : 10 platform tracks on 6 platforms
• Terminal King Abdulaziz International Airport : 4 platform tracks. This station is located on a branch of the route.
• Jeddah through station : 6 platform tracks on 4 platforms, 2 through tracks
• King Abdullah Economic City through station : 4 platform tracks on 2 platforms, 2 through tracks
• Terminal station Medina : 6 platform tracks on 4 platforms

Difficulties

The climatic conditions under which construction and, in the future, operation will take place, are extreme. Daily temperature fluctuations between +55  ° C and –5 ° C are common. About half of the route leads through a sandy desert with the risk of dunes migrating onto the route, the sand blowing them in and trains being " sandblasted ". Next comes heavy rain before, the otherwise parched wadis can swell within a short time into raging waters. The opening date 2014 initially targeted in 2012, as well as a postponed opening date 2017, could not be met.

construction

Phase 1

The contract for earthworks and substructure was awarded in March 2009 to an international consortium that operates under the name Al Rajhi Alliance . It is made up of a number of companies including China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC), Al Arrab Contracting Company Ltd , Al Suwailem Company, and France's Alstom . The order volume was 6.79 billion Saudi riyals .

The contract for the construction of the reception building worth more than 33 million euros went to the architects BuroHappold and Foster + Partners . They should take up traditional Islamic architecture . The stations are equipped with restaurants, mosques , parking garages , heliports and VIP lounges .

Phase 2

The second phase of the project includes the superstructure , signaling technology , traction power systems and electrification as well as the telecommunications equipment . This also includes the vehicles including their maintenance for 12 years.

On October 26, 2011 it was announced that the Saudi-Spanish consortium Al ‑ Shoula Group had been selected for the implementation of Phase 2. It was made up of Patentes Talgo , Renfe , Adif , Copasa , Imathia, Consultrans, Ineco, Cobra, Indra, Dimetronic, Inabensa, OHL, AL-Shoula and Al-Rosan. The order value for the vehicles and their maintenance is € 1.6 billion.

In 2013, DB International was awarded the project control and monitoring as well as a number of engineering services.

The construction work was completed in early 2015 and test operations began.

delay

The concerns that sufficient technical precautions were not taken against the locally expected weather-related difficulties and the drifting sand proved to be applicable. Consideration is given to protective walls against the drifting sand, trenches to collect the sand and then to be shoveled out, fans on the trains and "sand sweep locomotives". The concrete superstructure produced by Chinese companies also has quality defects. The rework that was now required delayed the project. In all likelihood, the drifting sand will also greatly reduce the total mileage of the trains' wheels. The Spanish consortium and the Saudi Railways Organization are now arguing about the resulting costs and compensation of 1.5 billion euros (as of the end of 2016) . To solve the problems was between the parties involved as part of a state visit by the Spanish King Felipe VI. concluded a supplementary contract in Saudi Arabia. Thereafter, the line should be gradually put into operation between the end of 2017 and March 2018. On June 11, 2017, a test drive with a Talgo 350 reached a speed of 330 km / h for the first time (traffic speed of 300 km / h plus 10% safety surcharge).

business

Installation

The route was officially opened on December 31, 2017, without being structurally completed, so that the deadline for completion by the end of 2017 could be formally observed. The stations King Abdullah International Airport and Jeddah were not yet ready. Since January 12, 2018, a pair of trains has been running on Fridays and Saturdays. The opening for regular traffic finally took place on September 25, 2018 by King Salman ibn Abd al-Aziz in Jeddah. Passenger service was supposed to start on October 4th; in fact, this took place on October 11th.

Initially, only four pairs of trains are to be offered that run on Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. Six pairs of trains are to run from 2019, and the frequency will then be increased further. The airport train station is not to be operated until March 2019 because it has not yet been completed. The speed of the trains is temporarily limited to 200 km / h because the signal system has not yet been completed.

Full operation with 35 train sets was targeted for September 2019, which should run every 10 minutes during peak load, i.e. especially during the Hajj.

On September 29, 2019, the roof structure and the 2nd floor of the reception building of the Jeddah train station burned out. 11 people were injured. The ground floor and first floor were not affected. The extinguishing work lasted 12 hours. According to a statement by the Saudi Minister of Transport, Nabeel Al-Amoudi, train traffic should be resumed within 30 days, with travelers in the Jeddah area being able to use the King Abdulaziz Airport Terminal station .

vehicles

The traffic will initially be carried out with 35 adapted Talgo trains of the Talgo 350 series . Each train has 13 cars, each with two independent air conditioning systems, to ensure that they function properly. A train offers 417 seats in two car classes . The trains will cost € 1,257 million. There is also an option for 23 additional trains at a price of € 800 million. Another train will be used as a court train for the Saudi king and will be given special equipment. The first train was shipped from Barcelona to Jeddah in December 2014 . The deliveries continued on a monthly basis throughout 2015. The maximum speed in scheduled operation should be 300 km / h.

Web links

Commons : Medina – Mecca railway line  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Mario Oriol: De España a la Meca Innovación, Patentes y Marca España. In: Documents Seminar Propiedad Industrial y su contribución a la Marca España. Universidad Internacional Menéndez Pelayo (UIMP), August 12, 2013, pp. 175–190 (Spanish). 
• Haramin High Speed ​​Rail. Saudi Railways Organization(English, project on the operator's official website). 

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Information from: NN: Haramain High Speed ​​Railway .
2. ↑ ^{a b c d e} Saudi Arabia: King Salman opens Haramain high-speed railroad . In: LOK Report . September 27, 2018 ( lok-report.de ).
3. ^ King inaugurates Haramain High Speed ​​Rail. Railway Gazette, September 25, 2018, accessed September 27, 2018 . 
4. ↑ Europa Press: Un consorcio español logra el AVE La Meca-Medina por 6.736 millones of October 26, 2011.
5. ↑ ^{a b c d e f} where: Soon through the Saudi desert at 300 km / h . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International , 4/2015, p. 176.
6. ↑ A gift from the king to the Muslims . In: DB-Welt 7 (2013), p. 15; NN: The Haramain “TAV” (High Speed ​​Train) . In: HaRakevet 2015/111: 09, C: Saudi Arabia (ii), p. 14.
7. ^ Al Rajhi wins Makkah - Madinah civils contract. In: Railway Gazette International of February 9, 2009.
8. ^ Foster and Partners: Foster + Partners and BuroHappold joint venture to design four stations for Saudi Arabia's new Haramain High-speed Railway. ( Memento of the original from October 3, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
9. ↑ BuroHappold Engineering: Joint venture to design four stations for Saudi Arabia's new high speed railway. ( Memento of the original from August 30, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
10. ^ Spanish consortium wins Haramain High Speed ​​Rail contract. In: Railway Gazette International of October 26, 2011.
11. ^ Saudi Railways Organization: Saudi Railways Expansion Program. ( Memento of the original from April 9, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
12. ↑ ADIF participation in phase 2 ( Memento of the original from January 8, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. .  
13. ↑ adjudicado al Consorcio español el contrato de alta velocidad de Arabia Saudi .
14. ↑ ^{a b} Talgo se adjudica el contrato de Arabia. Patentes Talgo ( Memento from November 29, 2014 in the Internet Archive )
15. ↑ db: DB wins in Saudi Arabia . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International , 11/2013, p. 583; NN: At 320 km / h through the desert . In: DB Welt 3/2015, p. 10.
16. ^ The Haramain “TAV” (High Speed ​​Train) . In: HaRakevet 2015/111: 09, C: Saudi Arabia (ii), p. 13f.
17. ↑ where: Saudi high-speed project at risk . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International 1/2017, p. 38.
18. ^ Revised Timescala for Haramain . In: HaRakevet 116 (March 2017). ISSN 0964-8763, p. 14.
19. ↑ where: Desert AVE inaugurated . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International 11/2018, p. 590.
20. ↑ Ute Müller: The sad start of the desert train . In: Neue Zürcher Zeitung . September 26, 2018, ISSN  0376-6829 ( nzz.ch [accessed on September 28, 2018]).
21. ↑ where: Desert AVE inaugurated . In: Eisenbahn-Revue International 11/2018, p. 590.
22. ^ Saudi Arabia investigates cause of Haramain railway's fire. In: Arab News. October 1, 2019, accessed October 1, 2019 . 
23. ↑ Saudi Arabia's Haramain train to return to service in 30 days after Jeddah fire. In: Arab News. October 1, 2019, accessed October 1, 2019 . 
24. ↑ Saudi bidding hots up . In: Railway Gazette International v. March 10, 2008.
25. ↑ Barrow.
26. ^ The Haramain “TAV” (High Speed ​​Train) . In: HaRakevet 2015/111: 09, C: Saudi Arabia (ii), p. 14.