Print

High speed rail link between Doha and Bahrain

Catherine Deshayes

Qatari Diar Real Estate Investment Company have signed a £500 million deal with Germany-based Deutsche Bahn for a national rail project that includes a high-speed rail link between Doha and Bahrain via a planned causeway.

Germany's national railway company Deutsche Bahn will help the Gulf nation of Qatar in integrating its various proposed railway networks into a comprehensive and consolidated railway system.

Deutsche Bahn runs one of Europe's most extensive railway systems connecting over 80 cities, and this new railway has five systems planned.

One is an east coast rail link, a passenger and freight line linking the industrial cities of Ras Laffan and Mesaieed via the capital city of Doha.

The second is a high-speed link between the New Doha International Airport, Doha City Centre, and the country of Bahrain via a causeway bridge that is being developed between the two nations.

Another freight rail link is being planned based on the GCC rail and Doha expressway studies.

The fourth is the Doha metro network under the Qatar Transport Master Plan.

The fifth comprises a light rail and people mover networks connecting Lusail, Education City and West Bay.

Ghanim Bin Saad Al Saad, Chief Executive of Qatari Diar, said, "We are looking forward to working closely with Deutsche Bahn, one of the world's leading railway services companies, to integrate a state-of-the-art rail system for Qatar.

"We believe such a system will advance Qatar's forward-thinking goals of becoming a first-class state that provides a high standard of living for all its residents and is an international destination for industry and tourism," Mr Saad Al Saad added.

The project is part of Qatari Emir Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani's plan to connect Qatar with the rest of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, which include Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

A team of around 70 local and international experts based in Qatar will be deployed by Qatari Diar and Deutsche Bahn to undertake an intensive study on the feasibility of the project.

To browse properties for sale in Bahrain, visit www.themovechannel.com/property/Bahrain/