MidEastRailwatch:RedSeaBridge

[GWR]

http://www.saudirailexpansion.com/saudirailexpansion/default.aspx

http://www.saudirailexpansion.com/SaudiRailExpansion/images/map.jpg

There is also a Gulf Railway Project in circulation at present, which I will try to bring to you eventually. Yemen has also just recently expressed an interest in joining with this project.

Qatar also has some highly-likely light-rail projects in the offing.

Gulf railway network 'under study'
Posted: Sunday, August 05, 2007

The GCC is studying a project to build a grand railway network to connect all Gulf
states, a top official was quoted as saying in Abu Dhabi.

Mohammed bin Ubeid Al Mazroie, GCC assistant secretary-general for Economic
Affairs, made the announcement during in a lecture at the Information Affairs Office
of the Deputy Prime Minister in Abu Dhabi.

Al Mazroie, quoted by the Khaleej Times, also said the GCC Transportation
Ministers Committee had been assigned to prepare a detailed feasibility
study on the project and present its recommendations to the 25th Session
of the Supreme Council to approve it.

In this context, he asked Saudi Arabia to prepare the bidding application
documents and terms of reference for the feasibility study on the project.
The rail track will run along Eastern Coast of the Arabian Peninsula linking
the six GCC member states, from Kuwait to Muscat, running in particular
through the industrial ports and areas in the Arabian Gulf.

He said the railway project complemented other major projects such the
GCC grid network, water linkage, and the intelligent ID card project that
will facilitate movement of GCC citizens between the Gulf countries.

“Two holy cities, Makkah and Madinah in Saudi Arabia will also be
connected to all GCC nations to facilitate those people who visit the city
for holy pilgrimage, “ he said in reply to a question.

When asked whether other countries will join this project he said, “Iraq will
join this and Turkey is supposed to join it later likewise we hope about
Yemen as well.”

He outlined the contents of the final report related to the feasibility study
in general, the type of railway line and its environmental impacts, the
obstacles lying ahead and the means of overcoming them, and the costs and
time frame for implementing the project.

According to a Khaleej Times report, Al Mazroie said the project would
boost relations and co-operation among GCC peoples.

The cost will be the same for all nations, he explained.
http://www.gulftraffic.com/Images/PDF/Gulf%20railway%20network%20under%20study.pdf

[GWR]

Bin Laden's brother plans bridge over Red Sea

Posted Mon Apr 28, 2008 1:29pm AEST
Updated Mon Apr 28, 2008 2:01pm AEST

Moses once parted the Red Sea and now Osama bin Laden's half-brother is planning to build a bridge over it.

The proposed bridge would link Yemen to Djibouti, creating a man-made link between the Middle East and Africa.

Costing 14 billion euros ($23.5 billion), stretching around 28.5 kilometres and encompassing a six-lane motorway and a four-track railway, the bridge would be of Biblical proportions.

Meanwhile, the man behind it bears a familiar name, too - Tarek bin Laden, half-brother of the Al Qaeda leader.

Tarek, a Saudi construction magnate, has been lobbying the Yemen and Djibouti governments to back the project, which would create a direct link between Arabia and east Africa, without the need to travel by the Sinai peninsula.

Djibouti Prime Minister Dileita Mohamed Dileita said his government was not actively involved.

"The project fell on us from the sky with the proposal by Osama bin Laden's brother, who has a construction company in Saudi Arabia," Mr Dileita told AFP.

"People are talking about it a lot here - the Yemenis are convinced the project will be carried out with Saudi and Emirates' funds to connect the Arab world to Africa."

New cities

The plan envisages building new cities at either end of the bridge, which would itself in fact be a combination of bridges, with a stop-off point in the centre of the "Bab ed Mandeb" (Gates of Hell) straights at Perim Island.

"Numerous American, Yemeni and even French businesses are taking part in the project," the Prime Minister said.

"But the big advantage will be to take millions of African Muslims to Mecca, by train or by bus."

Indeed, on top of the commercial and logistic aspects, one of the key attractions of the bridge is spiritual - serving as an easier crossing for millions of African Muslims who make the pilgrimage to the holy shrine of Mecca, in Saudi Arabia, each year.

One of the new cities at either end of the bridge would be called the City of Light (Medinet an Noor) and at 600 square kilometres would be six times the land mass of Paris and serve as a trade, commercial and tourist hub for anticipated traffic.

"We don't yet know if it will be in the north of Djibouti or in Yemen," Mr Deleita said.

The bridge would in total measure around 28.5 kilometres, including a 3.5 kilometre link to the island and a final 13 kilometre crossing to Africa -- the longest suspension bridge in the world.

That, the developers say, could create 100,000 construction jobs over the 10-year build time.

Major obstacles

However, there are major obstacles in the way, both man-made and natural.

The bridge will cross a site known for intense seismic activity.

In 1978, massive tectonic plate movement triggered an eruption from Djibouti's Ardoukoba volcano and an earthquake measuring between three and 5.3 on the Richter scale.

The lava flows radically altered the seabed.

Yet the Ministry which looks after Djibouti's environment says it is confident the project design can plan for such acts of nature.

The general secretary of the Ministry for the Environment, Towns and Urban Planning, Aboubakar Douale Waiss, says such tectonic plate shifts are not something that happens suddenly, but are generally predictable.

"So the key is for architects to come up with plans which take into account these movements," he said.

Port trade

Another potential dilemma is the fate of Djibouti's port, which currently handles more than 120,000 vehicles a year, mostly on business to and from Ethiopia.

A road bridge would seriously dent that trade.

But Mr Waiss insisted the increased economic and political stability of Djibouti will be enough to support both bridge and port.

"The bridge and the port are complementary," he said.

"There are huge populations in the areas behind Djibouti - 80 million in Ethiopia alone - and the traffic will just continue to grow."

Finally, as the United States and France have substantial military bases in Djibouti, there are fears the new link will prove a tempting terrorist target, or simply provide easier access to some of the impoverished states in the Horn of Africa for Islamic extremists.

- AFP
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/04/28/2229184.htm

[jpatokal]

I figured some forum members might get a kick out of this, and for the life of me I couldn't find any other trip reports on the next about Saudi trains, so here's a recent trip report of mine:

Beer, Bacon and Bargirls: A Multimodal Escape to Bahrain (http://extra.wikitravel.org/blog/jani/beer_bacon_and_bargirls_multimodal_escape_bahrain)

Riyadh to Dammam by train, Khobar to Manama (Bahrain) and back by minibus across the King Fahd Causeway, Dammam to the airport by SAPTCO bus and DMM to RUH on Saudi LCC Sama. Plus beer, bacon and bargirls, of course :D

[GWR]

August 08, 2008 20:58 PM
Mid-East's First Monorail Expected To Debut In April 2009

DUBAI, Aug 8 (Bernama) -- A monorail system on Palm Jumeirah -- touted to be Middle East's first -- is expected to be operational by April 2009.

Palm Jumeirah's developer Nakheel said trial runs of the Palm Monorail, capable of transporting more than 40,000 people daily, would start in October.

Nakheel's managing director for investment projects, Robert Lee, said the 5.45km double track system had been completed on schedule and the monorail vehicles would arrive from Japan soon for the six-month testing period.

"In preparation for this process, a number of our staff travelled to Osaka to be trained, taking advantage of the close relationship between the governments of the twinned cities of Dubai and Osaka," Lee said.

"We expect to have the monorail operational and capable of carrying more than 40,000 passengers on Palm Jumeirah each day by April 2009," he said in a statement.

Lee said the Dubai Roads and Transport Authority was working closely with the Office of British Rail for the Palm Monorail's inspection, and eventually certification, process. The system will ultimately connect to the Dubai Metro which is under construction.

Engineered by leading railway system manufacturer Hitachi Ltd, the monorail vehicles are undergoing final inspection in Japan before arriving in Dubai, said Nakheel.

The Palm Monorail is being developed by a consortium of leading international companies led by Marubeni Corporation. The system is fully automatic and driverless although an attendant will be on board at all times.

Nakheel's Dubai portfolio currently includes Palm Jumeirah, Palm Jebel Ali, Palm Deira, The World, Waterfront, The Universe, Jumeirah Islands, Jumeirah Village, Jumeirah Park, Jumeirah Heights, The Gardens, Discovery Gardens, Ibn Battuta Mall, Al Furjan, International City and Dragon Mart.

According to the company, its projects are conservatively estimated to be worth US$80 billion. Upon completion, Nakheel's waterfront projects will have added more than 1,000 kilometres of shoreline to Dubai's coastline.

-- BERNAMA
http://www.bernama.com.my/bernama/v5/newsindex.php?id=351624

[GWR]

As featured Frontpage today:
http://www.2bangkok.com

See previous post in this thread, that places more emphasis on the fact that one of the Bin Laden Family is involved in this planned megaproject:
http://www.angkor.com/2bangkok/2bangkok/forum/showpost.php?p=20877&postcount=2

Intercontinental bridge

15 Nov 2008


RED SEA: Ambitious proposals have been revealed for a bridge across the Bab al-Mandib, or Gate of Tears, between Djibouti and Yemen. The US$20bn Bridge of the Horns would be 28·5 km long, with three 2·7 km suspension spans, the longest in the world. It would carry four railway tracks, a six-lane road and pipelines for water and oil across the strait, which is up to 300 m deep.

Danish firm COWI has been chosen to provide engineering designs. Providing clearance to over the busy shipping route to Suez ‘will mean at least 10 km of multi-span suspension bridge’, according to Head of Major Bridges Henrik Andersen. ‘The concrete pylons will have to be supported up to depths of 300 m and at the same time tower 400 m over the water’s surface to support the ultra-long span suspension bridge. Each pylon will be 700 m. It will be enormous.’

The scheme is promoted by Al Noor Holding Investment, a UAE-based firm owned by Sheikh Dr Tarek Awad Mohammed bin Laden. Memoranda of Understanding have been signed with the two governments, and Djibouti’s Prime Minister Dileita Mohamed Dileita attended the formal launch of the scheme in July. A 12-year constuction timescale is envisaged, although the legal framework and funding are still to be finalised.

The bridge is part of a US$200bn vision to create a new city at each side of the strait. Each city will have ports, power stations and transport hubs.

Links to the outside world would be required, and a rail link through Yemen to Dubai is proposed, as well as connections to Addis Abeba.

http://www.railwaygazette.com/news_view/article/2008/11/9012/intercontinental_bridge.html

See also Afro RailWatch:
http://www.angkor.com/2bangkok/2bangkok/forum/showthread.php?t=3148

See also ambitious Saudi Arabian Rail Plans:
http://www.angkor.com/2bangkok/2bangkok/forum/showpost.php?p=19939&postcount=1

Plus interesting report on Saudi Trains:
http://www.angkor.com/2bangkok/2bangkok/forum/showpost.php?p=20986&postcount=3