MAKE IT DO WHAT IT DO
Riyadh Metro stands out as one of Saudi Arabia's greatest-ever building projects and is set to revolutionize how people get around in the capital.
The Riyadh Metro project is the largest single infrastructure project being built anywhere in the world today in terms of cost and mileage. Since initiation in 2014, construction of the project has come aboveground, literally and figuratively. In late 2016, most of the tunneling was completed, and today the aboveground sections, flyovers, stations, and ground-level tracks are being completed at a rapid rate.
During the tunneling process, construction caused traffic delays in an already congested city, and grumbles were forthcoming. Today, the mood has shifted. Massive cranes lay concrete sections on elevated tracks that run for kilometers over the city. Modern stations are taking shape. It is apparent from a short drive across Riyadh that the city is on the brink of an unprecedented transformation.
With almost 6 million people, Riyadh contains nearly the population of the entire country of Oman, or about twice the city of Dubai. There are nearly no public transportation options, and the city has an area nearly the size of the state of Delaware in the US. This makes for crippling traffic and transit time when travelling, for example, from the north, where King Khalid International Airport is located, to the south, where the Diplomatic Quarter can be found.
What is interesting today about the Riyadh Metro project is how it fits into the Kingdom's larger ambitions. Officials are pushing through reforms under the banner of Vision 2030 with a vigor rarely seen in years where Brent crude prices were higher. Each segment of the vision seems to have been carefully planned to tie in with others, and the metro has clear benefits to the Kingdom's largest metropolis.
The vision wants Saudis to be more connected to their government and to have more options for what to do with their time. The Metro offers to bring together parts of Saudi society in a way that other infrastructure simply cannot. It will link all parts of the city and deliver access to entertainment venues, government offices, malls, and workspaces, bringing people together in public spaces. In Riyadh, these forces are certain to indelibly change the cultural makeup and ambiance of the city.
The metro, however, also does not stand alone. It will be complemented by a citywide bus system, said to be optimized with app-based mobile technology that minimizes waiting time. When combined with an already extensive adaptation of ride-hailing services like Uber and Careem, which have both seen substantial investments by PIF, the same wealth fund that is bankrolling the metro, Riyadh has found itself to be significantly more connected.
There are questions of whether Saudis, used to riding in their cars, will even take the metro. However, at least half of the Kingdom's population is under 25, and the expense of cars is a burden for many.
There is also more at stake than mere convenience. For example, the King Abdullah Financial District, a multi-billion dollar megaproject consisting of 59 towers that is nearly finished but has no significant tenants, will have its own dedicated metro station. Furthermore, Saudi Arabia's social contract is a carefully balanced affair. Fuel prices are expected to rise each year, and will be followed by a VAT tax as well as even higher utility prices. Efficient and affordable public transportation will ease the burden on consumers in Saudi Arabia's largest population center and will make the reforms that Saudi Arabia must undertake in the coming years easier to swallow.
MAKE IT DO WHAT IT DO
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Column
YB Pehin Dato Lim Jock Seng, Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office & Second Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Brunei
TBY talks to YB Pehin Dato Lim Jock Seng, Minister at the Prime Minister's Office & Second Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Brunei, on the sector.
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A Crude Awakening
The Kingdom has made renewables a critical aspect of its ambitious Vision 2030 effort to diversify its economy and wean itself from a strictly carbon-based diet, not to mention empower local businesses and individuals to take up the mantle and lead the energy sector into the next generation.
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Abdulaziz AbdulKarim, Vice President of Procurement & Supply Chain Management (PSCM) , Saudi Aramco,
TBY talks to Abdulaziz AbdulKarim, Vice President of Procurement & Supply Chain Management (PSCM) at Saudi Aramco, on the IKTVA program, supporting local content, and looking back over a successful year.
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Ayman Abdullah Alfallaj, CEO, Thiqah
TBY talks to Ayman Abdullah Alfallaj, CEO of Thiqah, on how the private sector can keep pace with the speed of public reforms, delivering a strong and lasting value proposition, and integrating the fruits of privatization into the public sector.
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Investment Calling
A technological revolution is underway in the Kingdom. Already one of the most tech-savvy nations in the Middle East, the Saudi market has long sought a thriving domestic technology and innovation scene. And with Vision 2030, it is on course to deliver just that.
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A Hejaz Unhindered
An ambitious series of road and rail projects from the Jordanian border down to the Indian Ocean are slated to open in part before the end of 2017. They bring the Kingdom that much nearer to its goal of greater non-carbon-based economic integration with the world.
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Sulaiman bin Abdullah Al-Hamdan, Former Minister of Transport and Minister, Civil Service
TBY talks to Sulaiman bin Abdullah Al-Hamdan, Former Minister of Transport and current Minister of Civil Service, on an attractive legislative framework for investment, railway linkages, and port developments.
read articleInterview
Rumaih M. Al-Rumaih, President, Public Transport Authority (PTA
TBY talks to Rumaih M. Al-Rumaih, President of Public Transport Authority (PTA) & Acting President of Saudi Railway Organization, on teaming up with commercially committed partners, making sure the Kingdom's land and sea bridges are of the first order, and providing employment for all the Kingdom's inhabitants.
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Nabeel M. Al-Amudi, President, Saudi Ports Authority, and Minister of Transport
TBY talks to Nabeel M. Al-Amudi, Minister of Transport, and President of Saudi Ports Authority, on optimally restricting concession agreements, resolving bottlenecks in the logistics chain, and privatizing as rapidly as possible.
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Khaled Bin Abdullah Al Hogail, CEO & Managing Director , Saudi Public Transport Company (SAPTCO)
TBY talks to Khaled Bin Abdullah Al Hogail, CEO & Managing Director of the Saudi Public Transport Company (SAPTCO), on the importance of strong and rational regulations, knowledge transfers, and unifying public and private transportation networks.
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Imad El-Zein, CEO, Auto World-Sixt Saudi Arabia
TBY talks to Imad El-Zein, CEO of Auto World-Sixt Saudi Arabia, on growing market share in challenging circumstances, partnering with world-class players to boost its local presence, and combining better services with lower costs.
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Saleh H. Al-Ghamdi, Acting CEO, Saudi Air Navigation Services Company (SANS)
TBY talks to Saleh H. Al-Ghamdi, Acting CEO of Saudi Air Navigation Services Company (SANS), on maximizing safe and effective services, effectively increasing the rate of Saudization, and easing the pathway of women into the workforce.
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Khalil Kutubkhanah, CEO, Jeddah Development and Urban Regeneration Company (JDURC)
TBY talks to Ibrahim Khalil Kutubkhanah, CEO of Jeddah Development and Urban Regeneration Company (JDURC), on Jeddah's unplanned settlements, the company's redevelopment projects, and its partnership model with the private sector.
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Dr. Khalid Bin Mohammed Al Shaibani, Deputy Minister, Planning and Health & Director of the Vision Realization Office
TBY talks to Dr. Khalid Bin Mohammed Al Shaibani, Deputy Minister for Planning and Health & Director of the Vision Realization Office, on reforms within the Ministry of Health, the corporatization of healthcare provision, and transformations in care delivery.
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Mohanad A. Dahlan, CEO, University of Business and Technology (UBT) Company
TBY talks to Mohanad A. Dahlan, CEO of University of Business and Technology (UBT) Company, on the evolution of the company, education investments, and upcoming sectors that will need support from the sector.
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Broad and Deep
As part of the continuing decentralization of higher education in Saudi Arabia, individual universities are pursuing their own paths to grow their faculties, engage with various international stakeholders, and ultimately move toward a more privatized future.
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Rafique Izhiman, Area General Manager KSA Jeddah, Yanbu Hotels
TBY talks to Rafique Izhiman, Area General Manager KSA Jeddah/Yanbu Hotels & General Manager, Intercontinental Hotel Group (IHG), Jeddah, on the role the firm plays in the market, expanding its footprint in the country, and expectations for 2017.
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