Saudi Arabia’s Transport Ministry plans to build a metro in Jeddah on the kingdom’s Red Sea coast.

The Jeddah metro will consist of three lines. The first line will run from Old Mecca Road to Sari Road, the second will run along Prince Majed Street from the site of where the new Jeddah airport is to be built, to the old airport. The third line will run along Palestine Road.

Further details including the timeline for the tender process for the metro has not yet been established. The Jeddah metro project is part of the kingdom’s $5.6bn investment programme in the city’s transport system.

That investment will also involve the development of a monorail, bus network and a tramway that will link Jeddah’s residential districts.

The ministry is now expected to carry out a 15-month review of the plan.

Plans for a metro in Jeddah follow plans for a $3bn metro network in Riyadh. The financing of Riyadh metro is currently being reviewed with a final decision to be made by the end of August.

The Riyadh Metro could be developed on a public-private partnership (PPP) basis (MEED 25:5:10).