Pandrol SRS in Belgium have been awarded a contract for the supply of its embedded rail system, Q-Track®. It will be used on the Haramain High Speed project in Saudi Arabia.
Haramain translates as “The two holy cities,” referring to the cities of Makkah and Madinah. The line will also run through Jeddah, the biggest city on the west coast of Saudi Arabia.
The choice of Q-Track® was made in order to avoid difficult tamping and maintenance operations in the stations. Also, the permanent way owner and the different consortiums recognised the advantage of Q-Track®’s speed of installation, its resistance to harsh climatic conditions, and its full compliance with the EN standards.
The contract is for 17 km of track including the stations of Madinah, Makkah, KAEC (King Abdullah), KAIA (King Abdul-Aziz International Airport) and Jeddah, with installation expected to commence in the fourth quarter of 2015.