Kuwait Plans Rail And Metro Network

The Kuwaiti Government plans to build an US$11bn rail network, including a metro system for its capital, according to officials.

The 245km line will run from the country's northern border with Iraq to the frontier with Saudi Arabia in the south.

The service will also provide links to the main airport and port, the chairman of the body coordinating the development plans of the Kuwait Overland Transport Union, Saeed Dashti, told Reuters.

If plans go ahead, half of the new network will be financed by the government.

Plans for the project are expected to be given the go-ahead in May, with construction scheduled to start in 2009 for completion in 2017, Dashti says.

By staff writer