Rabat – The Kenitra-Marrakech High-Speed Rail, construction of which His Majesty King Mohammed VI kicked off on Thursday, will be a major new lever to support the national economy at all levels, Minister of Transport and Logistics Abdessamad Kayouh said.
In a statement to the press on this occasion, Kayouh explained that this structuring project will reduce travel times between some of the Kingdom’s major cities, saving time up to 70% compared with current commute times.
This large-scale project will significantly ease citizens’ mobility, provide better connections between major conurbations, notably Rabat, Casablanca and Marrakech, and serve some of the Kingdom’s main airports, he said.
The Kenitra-Marrakech High-Speed Rail project, with a budget of MAD 53 billion (excluding rolling stock), is part of an ambitious program mobilizing an overall investment of MAD 96 billion, which also includes the acquisition of 168 trains at a cost of MAD 29 billion, intended to renew the existing fleet of the Moroccan National Railways Office (ONCF) and support development projects, as well as maintaining performance for MAD 14 billion, enabling in particular the development of 3 metropolitan transport networks in the Casablanca, Rabat and Marrakech conurbations
