The US$11.9bn Jeddah Metro will be completed by 2020, according to Osama Ibrahim Abdu, CEO of the Jeddah Metro Company
After the last leg of safety tests are conducted the metro will commence service, stated local reports.
The Jeddah Metro is targeting nearly 30 per cent of the city?s traffic for the next 20 years. In order to achieve this target Abdu said that new policies would be rolled out to encourage the use of public transport. Currently, only two per cent of Jeddah?s citizens utilise public transport services, stated Jeddah Metro officials.
Abdu said, ?This project is currently the biggest in Jeddah and will have a socio-economic effect on all parts of Jeddah. Designing and planning an integrated public transportation network on an existing city is a big and difficult challenge, especially since there are other projects being simultaneously carried out."
He added that some of the biggest challenges while constructing the first stage of the metro have been infrastructure, traffic and land ownership.
AECOM Arabia Company Ltd. has signed a contract for US$27mn with Jeddah Metro for one and a half years, and will provide consultancy services including planning, design and preparing documents for inviting bids.
Jeddah Metro will assign another contract to an architectural consultant to prepare preliminary designs for metro stations, buildings and car parks, added officials.
Jeddah Metro officials added that planning, availability of international consultants, and drawing on expertise of other countries that have executed similar projects would help in accomplishing the construction of the metro.
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