The railway projets currently underway in the Kingdom in large scale is however faced with a crisis of qualified contractors as also due to lack of adequate rail financing.

The main challenge is shortage of the qualified companies that can complete projects’ phases within the scheduled time to meet deadline.

The Saudi government has embarked on a huge infrastructure plan that need more professional companies for its implementation with high technology descriptions and a commitment to finish on schedule.

The governmental agencies are expected to issue a new package of measures in order to resolve obstacles. The government committees have put about 12 proposals, including new procedures for governmental projects and contractors. The committees have also put proposals for facilitating procedures and the bank guarantee, according to a local media.

However, the Saudi Railway Organization (SRO) ensures safety with the help of modern technologies like integrated signals and communication systems. Besides challenges with the length of the railway line, the Saudi Arabia’s climate and natural environment represent additional challenges to railway projects.

The government has also started examining the construction of railways within heavily populated cities to alleviate congestion.

One such project includes the SR 9.3 billion Riyadh light rail. It is owned by Al-Riyadh Development Authority and is still in the bidding phase and is expected to be completed by 2018. The Jeddah Metro is another planned project, which is budgeted at approximately SR 35 billion and owned by the Ministry of Transportation. It was expected to be awarded this year.

Saudi Arabia is planning to invest heavily in its railway infrastructure with SR 365 billion ($ 99.4 billion) by 2040. The government plans to launch a number of initiatives in this sector, according to The National Commercial Bank’s (NCB) latest research. The present value of projects executed is estimated at SR 50 billion ($ 13.6 billion). Several projects worth SR 93 billion ($ 25.3 billion) will be awarded this year and 2014. The number of railway passengers is expected to reach 3.37 million passengers by 2014. In terms of freight, about 15 million tons of goods and materials is expected to be transported through the railways by 2014.

However, the biggest challenge of railway projects is the sand. There is no a project like this that has been established in the desert, particularly when it deals with rapidly changing weather conditions of wind, high temperatures and rain.

It is predicted certain points along the 444 km will have a much bigger problem with the sand. Routes run north and south, with many kilometers running along the Red Sea coastline. The sea causes wind that brings sand clouds. This wind also forms and moves sand dunes.

A Spanish consortium is building protection walls and fencing to block the sand build-up along these points. These barriers are made out of bituminous asphalt concrete, which is known to be more durable, with the added bonus of being successful at blocking the train’s noise on the other side, according to a local newspaper.