Saudi Arabia revives Jeddah Metro with new Blue Line design tender

Dubai: Saudi Arabia has moved to restart the long-stalled Jeddah Metro, issuing a preliminary design consultancy tender for the project’s Blue Line and signalling a renewed push to revive one of the Kingdom’s most ambitious public transport schemes after nearly a decade of delay.

The tender, reported by MEED, was issued in early January, with consultancy firms given until March to submit proposals. It marks the first concrete action on the metro in years, following a prolonged period of reassessment that stalled progress after the mid-2010s.

Planned to run for roughly 35 kilometres, the Blue Line is designed to link King Abdulaziz International Airport with the Haramain High-Speed Railway station, strengthening connections between air travel, intercity rail services and key urban districts. The line is expected to include 15 stations and will be delivered under the oversight of the Jeddah Development Authority, the project’s client.

The Jeddah Metro was first announced in the early 2010s and later folded into a wider public transport programme around 2013 and 2014, as the city grappled with growing congestion and rapid population growth. Early momentum gathered in 2014, when French engineering firm Systra was appointed to carry out preliminary engineering works. 

In the same year, US-based Aecom secured a SR276 million contract to provide pre-programme management consultancy services, supporting early planning across multiple elements of the network.

Further progress followed in 2015, when UK architectural firm Foster + Partners was selected to design the metro stations. But that year also marked a turning point. Falling global oil prices prompted a reassessment of government spending priorities, and the metro’s scope, cost and delivery model were placed under review. As a result, the project entered a prolonged pause.

Initial concepts for the metro envisioned a multi-line network integrated with bus services and wider urban mobility upgrades. According to information published by the Jeddah Transport Company, the full scheme comprises four lines stretching more than 161 kilometres, with 81 stations and a fleet of 197 trains.

Alongside the Blue Line, plans incl