Al Mashaaer Al Mugaddassah Metro line

The Al Mashaaer Al Mugaddassah Metro line, (Arabic: قطار المشاعر المقدسة الخط الجنوبي‎ qtar al mashaaer al muqaddassah al khat diljanubi) is a metro line in the city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Claimed to have the highest capacity of any metro in the world, it operates for 7 days a year, and is used as an exclusive shuttle train for pilgrims between holy sites in Mecca, Mount Arafat, Muzdalifah and Mina to reduce congestion caused by thousands of buses and cars during the Hajj. It is the second metro system on the Arabian Peninsula, after the Dubai Metro.

Al Mashaaer Al Mugaddassah Metro line
 S 
Overview
Native nameقطار المشاعر المقدسة الخط الجنوبي
OwnerMakkah Mass Rail Transit Company (MMRTC)
LocaleEastern Mecca, Saudi Arabia
Transit typeRapid transit
Number of lines1
Number of stations9
Operation
Began operationNovember 13, 2010[1]
Operator(s)China Railway Construction Corporation Limited
CharacterAll elevated
Number of vehicles204 carriage 17[2] twelve-car trainsets of CRRC Changchun Type A
Train length276·8 m long and 3091 mm wide, (5 doors 12-car trains)[2]
Technical
System length18.1 km (11.2 mi)
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Electrification1,500 V DC
Overhead catenary

The line opened on November 13, 2010,[1] in time for the Hajj 1431 between November 25–29, 2010.[2] It was built separately from, and will not be physically linked to, the future Mecca Metro network.

Services
Congestion at Al Mashaaer Al Mugaddassah Metro station Arafat area, November 2012

The Saudis estimate the line will replace 53,000 buses, promising a safer, more comfortable pilgrimage.[3] By the time of the 2011 Hajj (Hajj 1432) it was able to operate at 100% capacity and is estimated to have carried more than 3.95 million passengers[4] making it, for that period, the most intensively used metro line in the world and among the busiest systems in the world. Each 12-car train carries 3,000 passengers and the headway is 150 seconds (24 trains per hour).[Note 1]

In peak periods the line operates with a special "group shuttle" schedule, better known as train movement "D", with three departure stations and three arrival stations. (At each holy site on the line there are three stations.) At off-peak times stopping-all-stations service is run.[4]

Operation

In March 2010, Serco Middle East was awarded a contract by China Railway Construction Corporation Limited (CRCC) to advise on the operation and maintenance of the Makkah Metro. CRCC had been awarded the design, build, operate and maintain contract in 2008 by the Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs.[5][6]

In November 2014, Metro project promoter Makkah Mass Rail Transit Co has selected Kuala Lumpur transport agency Prasarana to provide consultancy services during Phase 1 of the Makkah Public Transport Programme. Phase 1 covers the construction of two metro lines totalling 45·1 km and 22 stations, with commissioning scheduled by 2019.[7]

During the 2014 Hajj, staff from Prasarana and Express Rail Link helped to fulfil CRCC’s manpower requirement to support operations.[8]

Beginning 2018, the contract once again held by China Railway Construction Corporation Limited after 3 years operated by Prasarana Malaysia.[9]

Train movements
Movement Date Time Service patterns Arafat
1		 Arafat
2		 Arafat
3		 Muzdalifah
1		 Muzdalifah
2		 Muzdalifah
3		 Mina
1		 Mina
2		 Mina
3
(Jamarat)
A
7
Dhu al-Hijjah
04:00–24:00
 Arafat <> Mina
●
●
●
●
●
●
●
●
●
A
8
Dhu al-Hijjah
00:00–19:00
 Arafat <> Mina
●
●
●
●
●
●
●
●
●
B
8
Dhu al-Hijjah
20:00–24:00
 Mina > Arafat
●
●
●
●
●
●
B
9
Dhu al-Hijjah
00:00–10:00
 Mina > Arafat
●
●
●
●
●
●
C
9
Dhu al-Hijjah
Sunset–22:00
 Arafat > Muzdalifah
●
●
●
●
●
●
D
9
Dhu al-Hijjah
23:30–24:00
 Muzdalifah > Mina
Group Shuttle
Departure A
Departure B
Departure C
Arrival A
Arrival B
Arrival C
D
10
Dhu al-Hijjah
00:00–08:30
 Muzdalifah > Mina
Group Shuttle
Departure A
Departure B
Departure C
Arrival A
Arrival B
Arrival C
E
10
Dhu al-Hijjah
09:00–24:00
 Mina > Muzdalifah > Arafat > Mina
Stop 3
Stop 2
Departure
Stop 1
Arrival
E
11
Dhu al-Hijjah
00:00–24:00
02:00–04:00
 Mina > Muzdalifah > Arafat > Mina
Trains stop for maintenance
Stop 3
Stop 2
Departure
Stop 1
Arrival
E
12
Dhu al-Hijjah
00:00–24:00
02:00–04:00
 Mina > Muzdalifah > Arafat > Mina
Trains stop for maintenance
Stop 3
Stop 2
Departure
Stop 1
Arrival
E
13
Dhu al-Hijjah
00:00–18:00
02:00–04:00
 Mina > Muzdalifah > Arafat > Mina
Trains stop for maintenance
Stop 3
Stop 2
Departure
Stop 1
Arrival

Construction history

The line was claimed to be the world's fastest design in the world, at 22 months, 16 months if religious habit is taken into consideration. It was initially operated at 35% capacity with automatic train protection to assist manual driving.[10]

China Railway Construction Corporation Limited was responsible for infrastructure construction and systems integration under the 6.7-billion-riyal phase I contract which was awarded by the Saudi Arabian government in February 2009 following a visit by President Hu Jintao of China.[11]

CRCC carried out construction of the project infrastructure and integrated and subcontracted various systems. The line was built in only 21 months by about 8,000 skilled and unskilled workers and approximately 5,000 engineers.

DBI (Deutsche Bahn International GmbH), a fully owned subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn AG and DAR Dar Al Handasah, were awarded with a contract from the Ministry of Municipalities and Rural Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to become the supervising engineers, responsible for design, construction, railway systems implementation and railway operations until today.

Several subcontracts were awarded. Al-Muruj Electromechanical Co. was awarded MEP works at all 9 stations. Siemens provided the overhead line catenary system supplied at 1500 V DC. Westinghouse Platform Screen Doors supplied the platforms with screen doors,[2][12] Siemens power supplies, and WS Atkins is responsible for electrical and mechanical systems and project management.[10] Thales supplied SelTrac Communications-Based Train Control, an operations control centre, CCTV, SCADA and passenger information systems.[10] Systra supervised the civil work.[10] Serco provides operations and maintenance consultancy. TÜV Rheinland were the Independent Competent Person (ICP) on the project and provided safety, operations, training, fire and systems assurance consultancy support including the development of System-Wide, O&M Safety Case and HSQE Management Systems. TÜV Rheinland also secured the Operating Licence and Safety Certificate for acceptance by the Saudi Railway Commission (SRC) in 2011, 2012 and 2013. Air conditioning solution was provided by SKM Sharjah, UAE.

The line is elevated at a height varying between 8 metres (26 ft) and 10 metres (33 ft).[13][10]

Although the current metro uses conventional steel wheel on rail technology, it is sometimes incorrectly referred to as a 'monorail' due to cancellation on planned project in 2009.[13]

CRCC losses on contract

In November 2010 CRCC claimed they had lost 4.15 billion yuan (~US$600 million) on the US$1.77 billion contract due to changes insisted on by the client.[14] The earthworks alone reportedly increased two-and-a-half times from 2 million cubic metres to 5 million.[15] CRCC was seeking, with Chinese government support, extra compensation from the Saudi Arabian government to help cover the losses.

Rolling stock
The interior of CRRC Changchun Type A rolling stock

On 4 April 2009 Changchun Railway Vehicles was awarded a contract to supply 17 Type A 12-car metro trainsets.[10] Each set has eight motor and four trailer cars, all with aluminium bodies. A Type A car is 22.3 metres long and 3 metres wide.[16] Knorr-Bremse supplied the braking systems[12] with modifications to suit sandy conditions.[2]

The first trainset was shipped from China in May 2010 and the last arrived by the end of 2010.[2]

See also

Notes
  1. The CRCC website says the trains have a capacity of 3,000 passengers (250 cars × 12 car trains) (http://meccametro.com/about-abu-dhabi-metro Archived May 12, 2014, at the Wayback Machine) but the analysis of the 2011 Hajj cites a figure of 3,600 passengers per train (12 × 300) and 30 trains per hour (120 second headway) (http://www.terrapinn.com/exhibition/middle-east-rail/Data/dr-salim-albostapart3.pdf Archived March 4, 2016, at the Wayback Machine). It is designed to transport 72,000 passengers per hour per direction (PPHPD).

References
  1. "Hajj pilgrims take the metro to Makkah". Railway Gazette International. November 15, 2010. Retrieved May 8, 2014.
  2. "Hajj trains shipped to Makkah". Railway Gazette International. May 18, 2010. Retrieved May 8, 2014.
  3. Barry, Keith (September 8, 2009). "Take the Monorail to Mecca". Wired. Retrieved May 8, 2014.
  4. "Operation during Hajj season 1432H (2011 G)" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on February 22, 2014. Retrieved April 1, 2014.
  5. "Mecca Metro built by CRCC to be fully operated on Nov. 3". english.crcc.cn/. Archived from the original on June 6, 2015. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
  6. "#Serco case study – Makkah Metro". totalrail.org. Archived from the original on June 6, 2015. Retrieved March 28, 2012.
  7. "Prasarana to operate Makkah's pilgrim metro". railwaygazette.com. Retrieved May 15, 2015.
  8. "Prasarana wins Makkah metro consultancy contract". railwaygazette.com. Retrieved November 28, 2014.
  9. "Hajj metro prepared for annual seven-day operating season". Archived from the original on October 5, 2018. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  10. "Makkah metro contracts signed". Railway Gazette International. June 24, 2009. Archived from the original on February 28, 2010. Retrieved February 26, 2010.
  11. "World rail market March 2009". Railway Gazette International. March 8, 2009. Archived from the original on June 16, 2011. Retrieved March 3, 2010.
  12. "Knorr-Bremse in Mecca". Railways Africa. July 3, 2009. Retrieved February 27, 2010.
  13. "China to build Mecca monorail". Straits Times. AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE. February 12, 2009. Archived from the original on March 31, 2009. Retrieved February 27, 2010.
  14. An Yang (November 17, 2010). "China to Help CRCC Claim Loss on Mecca Metro Project". CaixinOnline. Retrieved May 8, 2014.
  15. John Garnaut (November 16, 2010). "China Inc goes off the rails in Saudi Arabia while building Mecca monorail". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved May 8, 2014.
  16. Sharon Lee (May 11, 2009). "CSR Zhuzhou: A Contract of 150 Metro Vehicles Valued RMB 1.1 Billion". Rednet.cn. Retrieved February 27, 2010.
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