AS THE influx of Muslim pilgrims to the two holy cities of Makkah and Madinah continues to surge, so does the pressure on the currently available infrastructure and facilities.

The Saudi government has been making exhaustive efforts to cater to the needs of the millions who head to these two cities especially during the Haj season. It has embarked on many projects for Makkah and Madinah, with the most ambitious of these being the expansion of the two holy mosques, which has transformed Makkah into a massive construction site. In fact, such is the congestion that with work ongoing on the Grand Mosque in Makkah, Saudi Arabia was forced to limit the number of pilgrims during this year’s annual pilgrimage. Despite this, nearly 3.1 million pilgrims visited the cities for the Haj alone.

The number of pilgrims to the kingdom is estimated to reach 17 million by 2025.

A total of more than SR300 billion ($80 billion) worth of mega developments are planned for Makkah, of which SR100 billion ($26.66 billion) worth are reported to be governmental projects that are in the construction stage.

Haram expansion

The expansion project of the Grand Mosque is a top priority for the Saudi government. Estimated to cost SR80 billion ($21.33 billion), it will expand the Haram mosque to 465,000 sq m from the current 365,000 sq m and double its capacity to nearly two million pilgrims at any one time. This, in turn, will help Saudi Arabia in steadily increasing the yearly quota for pilgrims and visitors.

The mosques have already been expanded previously, and under the latest expansion, the Mutaf (area where pilgrims circumambulate the Kaaba) in the mosque is currently being extended to four storeys in addition to the roof, Dr Bandar Hajjar, the Saudi Minister of Haj was quoted as saying by the Saudi daily Hayat.

The current expansion is considered to be the largest in terms of size and budget. The whole project has been divided into three sections: the first aims to expand the main building of the Grand Mosque; the second section will expand and develop external courtyards of the mosque, which includes toilets, corridors and tunnels, and entry and exit points for worshippers; and the third section will develop the services area, which includes air-conditioning and electrical plants, water and other lighting.

The current expansion ... largest in terms of size and budget.

It also includes the expansion of 18 normal entry points and a main door called the King Fahd Gate. Furthermore, there will be escalators to transport visitors, especially the elderly and weak, to the first floor and roof during peak seasons.

The expansion will allow more than 105,000 pilgrims to circumambulate the Kaaba in an hour compared to the 48,000 now, according to Dr Ali Osman Malibari, a researcher in specialised Haram affairs.

He said the first phase of the expansion was completed before the month of Ramadan this year and the final phase will be completed in 2015.

Work is also under way on 54 tunnels that will connect the Grand Mosque and the other holy sites.

Railway

Work on the estimated $16-billion Haramain High-Speed Rail is ongoing with a number of contracts having been awarded to ensure it is on track for completion by early 2015. Saudi Railways Organisation (SRO) has recently awarded a contract to DB International to supervise infrastructure design work, rolling stock production, and project management for the 450-km Makkah-Madinah rail link.

DB International will be responsible for reviewing the design of the track, signalling and telecommunications for the 320-kmph line. It will also provide technical assistance for the construction of the control centre and the electrification equipment, as well as for the operation and maintenance of the new line.

In addition, DB International will review the design and supervise manufacture of the fleet of Talgo high-speed trains.

Meanwhile, Tata Steel has won an order to manufacture 60,000 tonnes of high-quality rail for the Haramain Rail. Steel for the project will be made at Tata Steel’s Scunthorpe plant in the UK before being rolled into rail in lengths of 25 m. Work on producing the rail will start by the year-end and is expected to continue throughout 2014.

The new line is expected to carry around 160,000 people a day, and even more during the Haj pilgrimage. They will be transported on a fleet of 35 new high-speed trains.

Besides the two holy cities, the line will have three stations – two in Jeddah and one in Saudi Arabia’s new King Abdullah Economic City.

Last year, SRO awarded the contract for the final phase of completing, running and maintaining the Haramain High-Speed Rail project to a group of Spanish infrastructure, construction and technology companies — Copasa, Imathia and OHL.

Meanwhile, plans are also in place for an ambitious public transport project worth SR62 billion ($16.53 billion), including metro and buses which will make Makkah a smart city that is expected to attract investors and end traffic bottlenecks during the Umrah and Haj seasons. The first phase of this project, costing some SR25.5 billion ($6.8 billion), will be launched by the middle of next year and be completed in 2017. It will include ring roads, transport stations and parking lots as well as other private sector projects.

Among the major road projects completed recently is the 28-km highway linking Briman Bridge and Makkah. It allows those coming from north Jeddah and King Abdulaziz International Airport to use the highway and reduces pressure on the Al Haramain Road and Makkah-Jeddah Highway. The highway has four lanes in each direction and an intersection with Al Hijrah Road that leads to Makkah Highway.

Housing

Saudi Arabia is planning to build a new city consisting of 45 districts for 600,000 people near Makkah on the Makkah-Jeddah Highway. The residential and administrative city called Makkah Gate – the masterplan of which was approved in September – will be developed under a public-private partnership.

Spanning an area of 83 million sq m, the project will include educational institutions, government offices, shopping centres, housing units and a national park.

Saudi Arabia has been creating several new cities across the country, particularly near Makkah and Madinah, to cater to a growing population.

In July, plans were announced for a pilgrim city for 200,000 Muslims who travel to Madinah. The state-of-the-art city would cover 1.6 million sq m and include hotels, furnished apartments, a railway and bus station, government offices and a 400-bed hospital.

Among other developments, the Makkah Oasis for Affordable Housing Project, which contains 4,332 housing units is nearing completion. Of these, 523 units have been delivered and 2,000 others completed and partially delivered.

Hotels

To cater to the rising religious tourism, the Saudi government is looking at increasing its current hotel capacity of 53,000 rooms – 32,000 of which are in Makkah and Madinah – by 60 per cent over the next few years.

According to Guy Wilkinson, managing partner, Viability Management Consultants, Makkah will see its capacity rise by 15,981 keys in just 25 larger-than-average properties by 2017.

According to the Jabal Omar Development Company, some 28 operators have been signed up to manage the hotels in the mega complex, with four top global chains already having reported almost 8,000 keys between them: Hilton (3,862), Hyatt (1,028), Marriott (1,611) and Starwood (1,496). This represents half the entire future pipeline in Makkah.

Hilton will open six hotels in the Jabal Omar development – four Hiltons, a Conrad and a Doubletree. Hyatt is planning a Hyatt Regency, a Hyatt Place (residential style units) and a mid-market Hyatt House (this brand was formerly known as Summerfield Suites). Marriott is deploying its complementary JW Marriott, core brand Marriott and Courtyard by Marriott, while Starwood is proposing a Westin, a Sheraton and a Four Points.

Meanwhile, Millennium has announced the 1,400-key Umm Al Qurah Hotel and the Copthorne Hotel Nobola Makkah (756 units), according to Wilkinson.

Best Western is also opening two new properties in Makkah, including the 1,200-key Best Western Bougary Hotel, he indicated.

In addition, the Abdul Latif Jameel Real Estate’s Jabal Al Kaaba project will see a 1,743-key hotel, the first of 8,500 keys planned by the developer under its own new Anjum brand. The King Abdul Aziz Endowment project (Dokaee) will also feature hotels and hotel apartments.

With more than 61,000 existing hotel rooms, Makkah is the largest hotel market in Saudi Arabia.

Madinah

Madinah is one of the most prosperous Saudi cities, with numerous investment opportunities that have contributed to the growth of its trade, industry, tourism and agricultural sectors. This is in addition to its prominence as an important pilgrimage site.

Major projects under way in Madinah include the expansion of the Prophet’s Mosque, which is being implemented over three stages to accommodate more than 1.6 million worshippers; the Madinah Economic Knowledge project, which spans 4.8 million sq m and aims to attract more than SR25 million ($6.66 million) in investments; and the Haramain High Speed Railway.

The expansion of the Prophet’s Mosque is the largest in its history, involving a massive area of 1.4 million sq m. Mobilisation work has already started involving demolition of properties for this purpose, says the Ministry of Finance. This includes the razing of major hotels, hospitals, residential neighbourhoods, markets, and other real estate.

• Railway: The final designs for a monorail system in Madinah are nearing completion and are being supervised by the Consultative Office, says a report by Arab News. The designs for the network, which will run from Prince Mohammad bin Abdulaziz International Airport (PMIA) to Knowledge City and go on to the Prophet’s Mosque, are being drawn up by a Turkish company.

• Airport: Madinah plans to have the Middle East’s first eco-friendly airport with a SR4.5 billion ($1.2 billion) expansion of the PMIA. A metro station and a public bus station will be established at the airport, the expansion of which is slated for completion in 2015, according to Mamdouh Tarabishi, CEO of the airport. Additionally, it will also be linked with the Haramain Railway that connects Makkah and Madinah.

Tarabishi says the airport will be designed in the form of palm trees and will have 16 air bridges for passengers to board the aircraft.

The old facility will be used for support services following the completion of the new terminal.