Skip to main content

Royal HaskoningDHV scoops public transport project

A joint venture comprising Dutch consultancy and engineering company Royal HaskoningDHV and Saudi Arabian Mshari Al-Shathri engineering consultant has been appointed by the Saudi Arabia Ministry of Transport to prepare a feasibility study and preliminary design for a first public transport system for Dammam. The objective of the system is to alleviate congestion in the area, which has seen significant growth in recent years. Increasing use of private cars has led to congestion and at current growth rates,
July 26, 2013 Read time: 2 mins
A joint venture comprising Dutch consultancy and engineering company 6132 Royal HaskoningDHV and Saudi Arabian Mshari Al-Shathri engineering consultant has been appointed by the Saudi Arabia Ministry of Transport to prepare a feasibility study and preliminary design for a first public transport system for Dammam.

The objective of the system is to alleviate congestion in the area, which has seen significant growth in recent years.  Increasing use of private cars has led to congestion and at current growth rates, experts are forecasting gridlock across the Dammam urban road network within a few years.
 
The project entails a feasibility study and preliminary design for a combination of 50 km of light rail, 110 km of bus rapid transit system and 350 km of feeder buses in Dammam Metropolitan Area, including King Fahd International Airport.  The approach will be multidisciplinary and include public transport planning, infrastructure design, urban integration, operation planning, business case preparation, and procurement strategy.

Undersecretary for Transport Affairs, Dr Abdul Aziz Al-Ohaly said: “In order to improve mobility and to alleviate urban congestion, reduce noise and air pollution we realise that we need to encourage people to use public transport.”

Nils den Hartog, project manager for Royal HaskoningDHV said: “Public transport is currently almost non-existent in this car-dominated city where petrol costs no more than 15 cents per litre. A key challenge of this project will be the successful introduction of such a system.”

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Virginia presses ahead with tunnels upgrade despite tolls challenge
    July 30, 2013
    David Crawford reviews current developments and legal/financial issues facing tunnel management in Virginia. This autumn the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) in the US will defend its plan to introduce tolling on the Elizabeth River tunnels linking the cities of Norfolk and Portsmouth in the State’s Hampton Roads area. The tolling, which is due to start from February 2014, will be examined by the State’s Supreme Court later this year. The anticipated toll income, along with loans and bonds, is
  • Public transport vital for evolution of Muscat, says Cluttons
    January 22, 2015
    According to international surveyors, Cluttons, the Muscat government’s announcement to investigate the possible introduction of a tram service across the city is the first sign of a long awaited public transportation infrastructure plan, with the city’s real estate landscape directly expected to benefit in the long term. While the exact details of the proposed route are yet to be revealed, it is clear that any move to introduce public transport will be well received and will go some way to alleviating t
  • UK puts £3bn into new bus strategy
    March 16, 2021
    Daily fare caps, plus better coordination of multimodal services, are promised
  • Developing Mexico's ITS standards and infrastructure
    February 28, 2013
    Promoting open market conditions for ITS deployment remains a major part of Mexico’s recent infrastructure modernization program. Travis P Dunn, partner at D’Artagnan Consulting, looks at the progress so far. In the past six years, Mexico has embarked on an ambitious infrastructure modernization program, calling for the construction and improvement of more than 19,000km of road infrastructure and the deployment of advanced technologies that improve safety, efficiency, and convenience for road users. One of