The Holy Places train project, which is supervised by the Makkah Region Development Authority, stands as a testament to the size of the mega projects being implemented by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia under the leadership of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and His Highness the Crown Prince – may God preserve them – and the efforts made to serve the guests of the Most Merciful and develop services provided to them in the Two Holy Mosques and the Holy Places.
The Mashaer train project, whose first journey was launched in 1431 AH, connects the southeast of Mash’ar Arafat and the southwest of Mash’ar Mina (Jamarat area), via the Mashair Muzdalifah with a track of 20 km in high structures on poles in the middle islands of the roads.
The project includes nine stations elevated from the ground with a length of 300 meters for each station, and the train platforms are accessed by ramps, elevators, regular and electrical stairs, and automatic gates separating the train from loading areas and waiting areas, and is characterized by remote sensing technology to identify ticket holders that are sold to companies and institutions Meanwhile, crowds are dispatched to the stations on specific routes to the waiting areas below the stations that accommodate more than 3000 pilgrims.
In the 1440 Hajj season, the Mashaer train aims to transport 360,000 pilgrims through more than 2,000 trips within seven days, at a rate of more than 72,000 pilgrims per hour, while the number of trains reaches 17 trains, including 204 air-conditioned vehicles with a length of 300 meters, and each car accommodates 300 pilgrims In addition to two vehicles, front and rear.
The train passes through the stations distributed in Arafat, Muzdalifah and Mina, with three stations for each hair, where the train passes through three different stations in Arafat’s hair, and then passes three other stations in Muzdalifah, then stops at the first station at the first crossing of Mina, then in the middle, while its station arrives. The last to the fourth floor of the Jamarat Bridge facility.
The train route starts from the Jamarat station, passing through the shrine of Mina, then to Muzdalifah, and from there to Arafat, at a speed ranging between 80-120 km per hour, and runs without a driver, by means of automatic operating systems that are controlled through the operation and control center, and its height is above The ground to 45 meters at Jamarat.
The project was awarded the (FIDIC) International Prize, as it was chosen by the International Federation for Engineering Consulting from among the 24 best projects in the world during the past 100 years, due to the project’s distinction and its contribution to improving living conditions, relieving crowding, and preserving the cleanliness of the environment from the effects of Pollution from vehicle exhaust.
The Mashaer train project (the southern line) within the (Jamarat facility) won the (France Idle Man Award) prize in the United States of America for the best applied and operational research.
The project of shading pedestrian paths and ramps leading to the train stations at Mina Shrine, and the corridors of the project to connect Al-Azizia to the Jamarat facility, which was completed last year 1439 AH, will serve the walkers of these lanes and protect them from sunlight and other weather factors.
The crowd control project is one of the organizational projects that provide tangible efforts at the holy sites of the holy sites, and aims to control, sort and regulate the movement of pilgrims in the tracks leading to the gates of the train stations, sort the ticket holders at the train gates, control and regulate the movement of pilgrims below the train stations, and facilitate their movement to climb To train station platforms via elevators and stairs, protect station fences and gates, and prevent bedding inside stations.
In this regard, the role of the first smart application to be implemented in Hajj, and launched by the Makkah Region Development Authority, cannot be overlooked, to connect pilgrims to the Crowd Control Center with the Holy Sites train, with the aim of organizing their movements from the camps until their arrival to the train, according to their timetables.
The application also comes as a link between the leaders of the pilgrims’ regiments and the control room of the Crowd Control Center, and it contains the timetable for the pilgrimage, and it also provides the opportunity for the relevant authorities to prepare for the promotion according to the schedule set for each regiment.
The Mashaer train project is integrated with the rest of the projects that the Kingdom offers to the guests of God, in a system that embodies the Kingdom’s interest in the affairs of the Two Holy Mosques, and with the service and comfort of the pilgrims.
HAJJ MEDIA
