Huge investments earmarked for railways and roads in the Gulf Cooperation Council in the coming years are set to pave the way for the region's future.
According to a new study released by Kuwait-based investment bank, Kuwait Financial Centre or Markaz, the total value of railway projects is an estimated USD 79 billion between 2011 and 2020 including the USD 30 billion GCC rail network to be shared among the member countries.
For the roads sector, however, the total value of ongoing projects in the GCC, using a bottom up approach, is an estimated USD 18 billion at the end of last June. Of this, only one per cent is delayed. The UAE is by far the most dynamic country with a share of close to 42%. Qatar is all set to catch up with a share of 22%."
Markaz said that when the estimated value of projects announced for the period 2011 to 2015 is taken into account total GCC spending s amounts to USD 58 billion. The GCC has historically focused its transportation investments on building highways thus ensuring high quality roads across most of the region.
It pointed out that though the quality of roads is significantly better than in other emerging markets, there is concern over the current capacity as the increase in both population and propensity to purchase an automobile has led to clogged roads in most major GCC cities.
The aggregate length of the roads is an estimated 291,313 kilometers. Of this, 75% is in Saudi Arabia and 16% in Oman. These 2 countries have the largest land areas in the GCC thus the rest of the countries have a combined share of approximately seven per cent. Despite the boom in the number of roads being planned across the region, most countries are also looking at alternative forms of transportation to ease the strain on the highways.
Rail is more energy efficient than cars, buses, or trucks. It also saves on manpower and would help to enhance safety. Though requiring high investment initially it has relatively low operation costs compared to other modes of transport. It added that Dubai has spearheaded the GCC in unveiling the Phase I of its Metro project, as other countries are now planning or discussing their versions they are also planning for a pan GCC rail network.
(Sourced from Gulf News)
