I have said many times at both local and international forums that the greatest achievement of the Saudi government since the establishment of the Kingdom has been the massive expansion of the Two Holy Mosques in Makkah and Madinah and the accompanying development of the two cities which attract millions of pilgrims from all over the world every year. There will always be a need for further development and expansion of Haj services. And this requires the continuous improvement of the system for the transport of pilgrims.
The construction of a railway linking Makkah, Madinah and Jeddah, the pilgrim’s main gateway, is vitally necessary. Several people, in addition to me, have written about the difficulties experienced by pilgrims when they travel between these places. Many others who are also aware of the difficulties have backed the idea of a railway line and presented proposals on how it could best be implemented.
The proposal for a railway was first made more than 50 years ago. Since then, every minister of transport has included the project in plans for the ministry. The minister’s term ends and the project remains under review. The idea has even gone as far as the World Bank, which was asked for its advice.
The boom years came and went and the project is still on paper. With the economy struggling, the project is now faced with an even more formidable obstacle: A lack of funds. The project was turned over to the private sector. The private sector wasted some five years in studying the economic feasibility of the project. And of course it is true that the private sector has every right to know what benefits are to be gained from the project before committing any money to it. What is consistently overlooked, however, is the fact that most railway companies are either fully or partly state-owned.
Railways represent major government responsibilities in many parts of the world where they are viewed as a unifying factor which brings people together and facilitates communication. The economic element is certainly an important one but it should not be the only objective behind the project.
The idea of the railway was revived during Crown Prince Abdullah’s recent visit to Madinah. The minister of Haj conveyed to the crown prince the desire of the people of Madinah to see a railway linking their city with Makkah.
Urgent government intervention is needed because leaving the project entirely to the private sector means further delaying its implementation. Projects undertaken by the private sector are governed by economic merits without thought for either social or human considerations.
Among the most successful Haj projects sponsored by the state is the pilgrims’ housing project in Mina. Using fireproof tents furnished with all necessities, the cost of the project is being recovered from accommodation fees paid by pilgrims. What the state should do is treat the railway project in the same way. Financing could be sought from local as well as regional investment funds. The private sector could then take over the operation and maintenance of a project that would benefit countless millions of people.
