flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

Saudi Arabia capital city Riyadh is building a massive public transit system

Transit Facilities

Saudi Arabia capital city Riyadh is building a massive public transit system

More than 110 miles of track will connect 85 stations over six lines. The cars can reach speeds up to 90 mph, and Zaha Hadid Architects designed one of the train depots.


By Mike Chamernik, Associate Editor | May 20, 2016
Saudi Arabia capital city Riyadh is building a massive public transit system

King Abdullah Financial District Metro Station. Rendering couresy Zaha Hadid Architects. Click here to enlarge.

For several American cities, the infrastructure for their public transit systems have been in place for more than a century. It’s almost like Chicago, New York City, and Boston laid down train tracks the day after they were founded.

Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia and the home to 6 million people, is building its first light rail system from scratch.

Tech Insider reports that the city is building six metro lines that connect 85 stations over nearly 110 miles of track. Also, a new bus system will be implemented. 

For $10 billion, the Saudi government hired the U.S. construction and civil engineering firm Bechtel to lead the project. Bechtel assembled a group of contractor firms, and they are using 1,000-ton boring machines to hollow out train tunnels underneath the city for nearly 40 miles of track for 39 stations.

A few major architects have even designed train stations. Zaha Hadid Architects, for instance, designed the King Abdullah Financial District Metro Station, which will connect Lines 1, 4, and 6. The building will have a wavy lattice exterior and will contain four public levels and two underground levels of parking. 

The trains themselves will be nicer than any American rapid transit vehicle. The trains will be automatic, driverless, fully air conditioned, and Wi-Fi accessible. They can run up to 90 mph. Around 20% of the system’s power will come from solar energy.

The new transit system is expected to be ready by the end of 2018. Public transit will come just in time for the growing city, as estimates say that Riyadh’s population could reach 9 million by 2035.

 

Exterior of the King Abdullah Financial District Metro Station. Rendering courtesy Zaha Hadid Architects. Click to enlarge.

Related Stories

| Aug 6, 2014

25 projects win awards for design-build excellence

The 2014 Design-Build Project/Team Awards showcase design-build best practices and celebrate the achievements of owners and design-build teams in nine categories across the spectrum of horizontal and vertical construction. 

| Jul 28, 2014

Reconstruction market benefits from improving economy, new technology [2014 Giants 300 Report]

Following years of fairly lackluster demand for commercial property remodeling, reconstruction revenue is improving, according to the 2014 Giants 300 report.

| Jul 28, 2014

Reconstruction Sector Construction Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]

Structure Tone, Turner, and Gilbane top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest reconstruction contractor and construction management firms in the U.S.

| Jul 28, 2014

Reconstruction Sector Engineering Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]

Jacobs, URS, and Wiss, Janney, Elstner top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest reconstruction engineering and engineering/architecture firms in the U.S.

| Jul 28, 2014

Reconstruction Sector Architecture Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]

Stantec, HDR, and HOK top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest reconstruction architecture and architecture/engineering firms in the U.S.

| Jul 23, 2014

Architecture Billings Index up nearly a point in June

AIA reported the June ABI score was 53.5, up from a mark of 52.6 in May.

| Jul 21, 2014

Economists ponder uneven recovery, weigh benefits of big infrastructure [2014 Giants 300 Report]

According to expert forecasters, multifamily projects, the Panama Canal expansion, and the petroleum industry’s “shale gale” could be saving graces for commercial AEC firms seeking growth opportunities in an economy that’s provided its share of recent disappointments.

| Jul 18, 2014

Contractors warm up to new technologies, invent new management schemes [2014 Giants 300 Report]

“UAV.” “LATISTA.” “CMST.” If BD+C Giants 300 contractors have anything to say about it, these new terms may someday be as well known as “BIM” or “LEED.” Here’s a sampling of what Giant GCs and CMs are doing by way of technological and managerial innovation.

| Jul 18, 2014

Top Construction Management Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]

Jacobs, Barton Malow, Hill International top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest construction management and project management firms in the United States. 

| Jul 18, 2014

Top Contractors [2014 Giants 300 Report]

Turner, Whiting-Turner, Skanska top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest contractors in the United States. 

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category

Adaptive Reuse

Detroit’s Michigan Central Station, centerpiece of innovation hub, opens

The recently opened Michigan Central Station in Detroit is the centerpiece of a 30-acre technology and cultural hub that will include development of urban transportation solutions. The six-year adaptive reuse project of the 640,000 sf historic station, created by the same architect as New York’s Grand Central Station, is the latest sign of a reinvigorating Detroit.



Transit Facilities

Top 25 Transit Facility Construction Firms for 2023

The Walsh Group, Clark Group, Hensel Phelps, Skanska USA, and Hill International top BD+C's ranking of the nation's largest transit facility general contractors and construction management (CM) firms for 2023, as reported in the 2023 Giants 400 Report. Note: This ranking includes construction revenue for work related to bus terminals, rail terminals, and transit stations.


Transit Facilities

Top 40 Transit Facility Engineering Firms for 2023

AECOM, Jacobs, EXP, WSP, and Arup head BD+C's ranking of the nation's largest transit facility engineering and engineering/architecture (EA) firms for 2023, as reported in the 2023 Giants 400 Report. Note: This ranking includes design revenue for work related to bus terminals, rail terminals, and transit stations.

halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021