JEDDAH: First Trip of Saudi Arabia High Speed Railway Harmain opened to the public on Thursday.

Saudi Arabia High-Speed Railway Haramain is the biggest railway project in the Middle East. The mega project was completed at the cost of SR60 billion (USD16 billion).

First Flight of Saudi Arabia High Speed Railway Haramain

The railway will transport as many as 60 million passengers annually.

The high-speed railway opened to the public today transporting travelers between Makkah and Madinah.

Chairman Public Transport has said it was a proud and historical moment for the Kingdom.

The train is expected to operate daily but at the moment only from Thursday to Sunday.

The time for the journey between Makkah and Madina will be covered in just 2 hours by the Saudi Arabia High-Speed Railway Harmain, and trips between Makkah and Madinah stopping at Jeddah and KAEC will take an additional 20 minutes.

The road journey during the Hajj season between the two cities took as long as 10 hours.

The railway will cover a distance of 450km, linking stations in Makkah, Jeddah, King Abdul Aziz International Airport in Jeddah (KAIA), King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) in Rabigh, and Madinah.

To diversify the oil-dependent economy, the kingdom is spending on infrastructure, a USD22.5 billion metro system is currently under construction.

The fleet of 35 trains is can transport up to 60 million passengers. Each train can accommodate 417 people. Haramain Train can travel up to 300km per hour.

Chairman Public Transport, Rumaih Al-Rumaih extended thanks to King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for their unlimited support. He also thanked Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal for major role played by him in overcoming obstacles during the implementation phase. Also thanked Transport Minister Nabeel Al-Amoudi and all other partners

Saad Al-Shehri, director-general of the Haramain High-Speed Railway in Madinah, confirmed 417 passengers were onboard the first flight of Haramain Train.