Makkah Development Authority implements 14 projects in holy capital, sacred sites

Makkah Region Development Authority (MRDA) will implement 14 development projects in the holy capital, under the supervision of Prince Badr bin Sultan, deputy governor of Makkah, and Prince Khalid Al Faisal, governor of Makkah province, head of MRDA, and advisor of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques.

Public transport in Makkah comes at the forefront of the projects, where the first phase of the 12-track project is being implemented, including seven local bus tracks of 172 kilometers (km) and 347 stations, five express bus tracks with a length of 103 km and 103 stops.

The total number of buses in the Makkah Public Transport project currently stands at 400.

The project facilities include four central stations, seven bridges, 11 smart intersections and 455 stops. The total area of the overall bus plan is 320,000 square meters (sqm), out of which 116,000 sqm is dedicated to bus operating facilities, consisting of a control building, a driver's management building, a gas station, a light maintenance workshop, a heavy maintenance workshop, and the project headquarters.

The public bus transport project aims to accommodate the transport needs resulting from the expected growth in the population of Makkah and the number of guests of the Holy Mosque and sacred sites. It also aims to support economic development in the holy capital, and facilitate access to the Holy Mosque, mosques, educational, functional, health and commercial facilities as a first priority.

In addition, the project is intended to reduce pollution and protect the environment by reducing the reliance on personal vehicles as means of transport, and to develop sustainable transport system.

One of the specific projects is the development of the security control center in Ash-Shumaysi district, with the aim of improving the visual scene of sorting points and facilitating the arrivals of Makkah during the hajj and umrah seasons, by reducing the waiting time of vehicles during peak times.

The work includes increasing the number of tracks allocated to the movement of vehicles, and providing modern techniques for checking processes, to reduce time, effort and increases efficiency. The project also contains a number of service facilities for the relevant government agencies.

In the second ring road, the authority is implementing the Al Bibyan, Al Maskhota and Al Aziziya intersections. The remaining part of the third ring road is also being completed.

The projects also include Al Taneem intersection, two administrative and residential buildings for the operators of the Al Haramain High-Speed Railway, and pedestrian bridge project parallel

to King Abdullah Bridge, in addition to four ramps to connect bridges with camps and roads west of King Abdullah Bridge.

The projects also include the construction of pedestrian underground crossings tunnels and development of slaughterhouses.