Jordan’s Transport Ministry has invited consultants to bid by 30 June for a contract to assess the feasibility of a new light rail transit (LRT) to link its capital Amman to the city’s main airport.  

The London-based European Bank for Reconstruction & Development (EBRD) has been approached to provide funding for the scheme.

The project proposes to utilise the existing rail corridor from the El-Mahatta central station in Amman to Al-Jiza to the south, a 35-kilometre single-track narrow-gauge railway that includes one tunnel, one bridge, three road underpasses and 21 at-grade crossings. From Al-Jiza, the proposed LRT scheme needs an additional 2km branch line to reach the Queen Alia airport terminal.

The EBRD collaboration extends beyond this project to the broader review of Jordan’s public transportation sector. The kingdom has been struggling with traffic congestion and environmental issues, particularly in its capital Amman, and required projects go beyond establishing new road and rail infrastructure to introducing institutional and regulatory reforms.

Earlier in the year, the Transport Ministry prequalified international consortiums for the $75m, Saudi-funded project to construct the Shidiya rail link to fa ciliate the transport of 6 million tonnes a year (t/y) of phosphates from mines in Shidiya to Wadi al-Yutum near Aqaba.

Jordan is also a participant to the proposed $3bn, 1,000km interregional railway and logistics initiative, although little has been heard about the project since 2010.

The selected consultant for the project is expected to provide expert analysis of technical specifications, route analysis and connectivity, investment requirements and potential private sector involvement, particularly for the operation of the future LRT.

The tender explicitly states that the consultants will not be asked to submit a proposal. Instead, the highest-ranked consultant will be selected from a shortlist and be invited to negotiate the contract subject to availability of funding.