Qatar Begins Work on US$40 Billion Rail Projects

Work has begun on Qatar’s multibillion-dollar metro and ground rail projects, set to be completed in phases until 2016, and central to the emirate’s dreams of hosting the 2022 football World Cup.

The three projects – a metro network within Greater Doha, overground railways covering Qatar, and then links to the rest of the GCC region – are expected to cost as much as US$40 billion.

Qatari Diar officials said the metro rail project will cover a total distance of 354km and the trains will run at speeds of 80 to 160km per hour. The ground rail network will cover a total distance of 345km and traverse the entire country, with electric passenger trains running at up to 350km per hour, the paper said. - Arabian Business