Alstom signs deal for Saudi tramway

AlUla is an oasis city in Medina province, Saudi Arabia that has been settled since 5000BC. It was on the route of the Hejaz railway, built by the Ottomans in 1901-1908 to link Damascus and Medina, but closed in 1920. In 2018 the Royal Commission for AlUla signed a 10-year deal with France to develop and promote the city as an international tourism destination. 

 

Alstom has now been awarded an EUR 500M contract to build and maintain a 22.4km overhead-free tramline connecting UNESCO World Heritage tourist sites, with completion planned for late 2027. 

 

Part of the roadbed of the former Hejaz railway is to be used. 20 Citadis battery trams will be supplied and the 17 stops equipped with the SRS ground-based static charging system. 

 

This will be the first tramway ever built in Saudi Arabia and the world’s longest battery tramway. The Royal Commission described it as a fusion of historical routes with climate-adapted trams, to enrich the region’s cultural heritage while reducing carbon emissions at the same time. 

 

Alstom has supplied tramways to Dubai (United Arab Emirates) and Doha (Qatar). The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is building a metro in Riyadh, with Alstom supplying the trains.