KSA to build new 72km highway between Jeddah and Makkah
New highway will reduce travel time between the two cities to 35 minutes
Saudi Arabian authorities have started work on a new 7km-long highway that will cut the travel time between the cities of Jeddah and Makkah to 35 minutes, from the present 1 hour and 45 minutes, it has been announced.
Citing a Ministry of Transport spokesman, a report by the Saudi Gazette said that the new highway will start from the airport in Jeddah and will end on the fourth ring road in Makkah.
“The highway construction will be carried out in four stages,” said Turki Al Toaimi in the report, while also pointing out that budget allocations for the first three stages have already been made.
Furthermore, he said that the first two stages are expected to be finished in one year, if the expropriation process is completed in time.
Once complete, the new highway will serve districts in north Jeddah, Obhur, Al-Jawhara Stadium and King Abdullah Economic City, he added.
Saudi Arabia is expected to see its infrastructure construction market reach $37.5 billion (in nominal value terms) by 2021, with several large-scale projects planned, including numerous transport oriented projects.
