The Train to Mecca

The Saudis have so much money that cost doesn't matter.

They are also suckers for technology salesmen. So a monorail might well be chosen. "Conventional" rail has the problem of sand blowing on to the track. I have watched a small part of the track near Dammam and wondered what maintenance would do about drifting sand. The area round about Makkah is just as sandy. It would be a good idea not to use a third rail system because people wander about. That is also a reason why an elevated structure is useful. There are no donkeys or camels up there.

I worked in Taif a long time ago. In those days there was a special bypass for non-Muslims but one could see the lights of Makkah reflected in the sky.

Apparently the builder is Changchun Railway Vehicles Company Ltd., and the rolling stock will be their A type "high end" subway rolling stock, similar to what is on order for Rio De Janeiro's metro (sorry, no pictures). Changchun also has a number of partnerships with other builders, such as Bombardier, Alstom, and Hitachi (for their straddle type monorail).

*to add- Australian readers may be familiar with this builder, as they are supplying the new Waratah trainsets for Sydney's suburban network.

george matthews wrote:"Conventional" rail has the problem of sand blowing on to the track. I have watched a small part of the track near Dammam and wondered what maintenance would do about drifting sand. The area round about Makkah is just as sandy.

Early articles about the construction of 1950s Saudi Arabian railways claimed that the sand near the tracks was oiled so that the sand dunes could cross the line and reform on the other side.

David Benton wrote:http://www.railway-technology.com/featu ... ture65473/

"The Train to Mecca
Saudi Arabia is launching the Al Mashaaer Al Mugaddassah Metro, more widely known as the Mecca Metro, in 2010. The project seems likely to revolutionise the journey of some 3 million Muslim pilgrims who make their way to the holy city each year during Hajj. Alex Hawkes speaks exclusively to Thales, which is providing its driverless train control and telecommunication systems for the project."

There are pictures of a hanging monorail type system , yet no mention of it in the article . i wonder if this is the system that will be used ??

Of course, this is different from the line that will bring pilgrims from Jeddah. That will use High Speed technology.