Today, the Moroccan monarch, King Mohammed VI, gave the start of the construction of the second line of high -speed train, as part of preparations to host the 2030 World Cup in partnership with Spain and Portugal. The new line extends with a length of 430 km to link the cities of Quneitra and Marrakech, at a cost of up to 53 billion dirhams (about 5.7 million dollars).
This project comes as an extension of the first line linking Tangier to Casablanca since 2018, the first of its kind in the African continent. The king chaired the launch ceremony from the Rabat-Akdar train station, confirming Morocco’s commitment to developing its infrastructure in preparation for the World Cup.
The new line is expected to reduce the time of travel between Tangier and Marrakech to two hours and 40 minutes, providing more than two hours compared to the current time, and the Rabat and Casablanca airports will also link to the new Benslimane stadium to be completed by 2027.
The project falls within a comprehensive plan to enhance public transportation by 2030, including the acquisition of 168 trains worth 29 billion dirhams, including 18 high -speed trains from the French company “Alstom”, 110 trains from the South Korean “Hyundai Ruttum”, and 40 trains from the Spanish company “CAF”.
The program also includes the establishment of a local factory for the manufacture and maintenance of trains, with the aim of achieving a local industrial integration exceeding 40%, and providing thousands of job opportunities. This project is the result of international cooperation, as the trains deal with “Alstom” was announced during the visit of French President Emmanuel Macron to Rabat in late October, which witnessed the strengthening of economic partnership between the two countries.
The French Minister, Laurent Saint Martin, stressed, during his attendance, that this project represents a “new stage of fruitful cooperation between Morocco and France”, expressing its importance in transferring experiences and enhancing bilateral relations.
