Skip to main content

Mena states plan $225bn transport projects

The Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region has a US$225 billion rail, metro, tram and bus rapid transit (BRT) capital investment programme to 2030, according to a report by Meed Projects. There are now 108 separate railway, metro, monorail, tram and BRT projects under bid, under design or under study in fourteen Mena countries. More than 50 of them, with a combined value of almost $140 billion, are in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).
October 17, 2013 Read time: 2 mins
The Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region has a US$225 billion rail, metro, tram and bus rapid transit (BRT) capital investment programme to 2030, according to a report by Meed Projects.

There are now 108 separate railway, metro, monorail, tram and BRT projects under bid, under design or under study in fourteen Mena countries.  More than 50 of them, with a combined value of almost $140 billion, are in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).

Saudi Arabia has the greatest potential with projects worth US$50 billion due to be completed by 2025.  Rail, metro, tram and BRT projects in Qatar worth more than US$30 billion are scheduled to be finished by 2020, ahead of the Qatar 2022 World Cup Finals. The third biggest rail market is the UAE, where US$27 billion worth of projects is due for completion by 2030.

These projects will be highlighted at the Meed Mena Rail & Metro Summit which opens at in Abu Dhabi at the end of October, when around fifty experts from government and private businesses in the GCC, the wider Middle East and the world will address the event, with over 300 delegates expected to attend the conference.

Speakers at the conference include Dr Mohammed Montazeri, deputy managing director for planning and logistics at the Tehran Urban and Suburban Railway Company. Iran has more than US$15 billion of major projects in the pipeline and two-thirds of this planned investment will be in the urban rail network of the Iranian capital by 2025.

Related Content

  • September 30, 2020
    LA approves $400bn 30-year transport plan
    City hopes multi-billion, long-term investment will ease traffic delays and reduce air pollution
  • May 2, 2018
    Running on empty
    Drivers are an increasingly rare species on Europe’s commuter metros as unattended train operation is embraced. David Crawford takes a low-speed tour of the continent’s capitals to see what’s happening. Unattended train operation (UTO) is fast becoming the norm for Europe’s metros, on existing as well as new lines. November 2017 statistics published by the International Association of Public Transport (UITP) show the continent as having 28% of the global total of route km on lines operating at the ultimate
  • July 30, 2015
    China leads the way in road, railway projects investment in Asia-Pacific
    According to a new report by Timetric’s Construction Intelligence Center (CIC), the major economies in Asia-Pacific are investing over US$2.86 trillion in road and railway projects in the coming years. China - as the leading economy - heads the 13 countries analysed by CIC with projects valued at over US$1.15 trillion, followed by India at almost US$500 billion and Australia with US$289 billion. China, apart from investing within its own borders, is also expanding its influence in the region with the re
  • May 8, 2012
    Traffic Tech wins traffic signal maintenance contract in Abu Dhabi
    The Abu Dhabi Department of Transportation has awarded Traffic Tech (Gulf) – Abu Dhabi a traffic signal maintenance contract for the Al Ain City. Valued at over US$ 4.5 million, the contract will run for two years covering maintenance and development of all traffic signals throughout the city. Recently, Middle East Integrated Systems (MEIS), Traffic Tech Group’s Bahraini based company, has also been awarded Bahrain’s traffic signal maintenance contract covering over 280 intersections. Currently, the