Travellers flying through Casablanca’s Mohammed V Airport will soon be able to reach Rabat in 30 minutes and Marrakech in less than an hour by high-speed train, as Morocco pushes ahead with one of its biggest transport projects. The National Railways Office (ONCF) has awarded a 394.4 million dirham contract for the construction of a new high-speed rail station at Mohammed V Airport. The contract went to the Moroccan consortium Urbagec-Separator SA after beating TGCC, SGTM and Construction Management Services (CMS).
The new station is part of the extension of Morocco’s high-speed rail line from Kénitra to Marrakech. It is being designed by architect Abdou Lahlou of ALA Concept and is expected to handle up to five million passengers a year.
The project also includes a 550-space car park and is scheduled to be completed within 24 months to match the timetable of the wider high-speed rail expansion.
The station will be built in Nouaceur and will be directly connected to the future expansion of Mohammed V Airport. It is being planned as part of a new airport terminal that will increase the airport’s annual capacity to 20 million passengers.
Once operational, passengers will be able to travel between Mohammed V Airport and Rabat in around 30 minutes, while journeys to Marrakech are expected to take about 55 minutes.
The airport station is one of nine major contracts launched by ONCF as part of the wider Kénitra to Marrakech high speed rail project. The programme covers new stations, maintenance facilities and technical centres being built at the same time.
Other major station projects have also moved forward.
A contract worth nearly 945 million dirhams was awarded to SOGEA Maroc for the construction of Casa Sud station. The new station will cover more than 21,980 square metres at the junction of Boulevard Roudani and Route d’El Jadida and is expected to become a key transport hub for southern Casablanca.
Meanwhile, Jet Contractors secured a contract worth around 415 million dirhams to build the future station serving the Hassan II Grand Stadium in Benslimane. The station is expected to support travel to the planned sports complex ahead of major international sporting events.
Beyond the flagship stations, ONCF is also upgrading more than 20 existing stations along the route. These include Sidi Bouknadel, Salé Tabriquet, Témara, Aïn Attiq, Benguerir and Sidi Bouatman. The work is aimed at preparing the network for changing traffic patterns and the future regional express rail system.
The rail project is moving forward alongside a major expansion of Casablanca’s airport led by the National Airports Office (ONDA).
Ground works for the new airport terminal have already begun after a 294 million dirham contract was awarded to STAM. Altogether, investment in the airport development programme is estimated at around 15 billion dirhams, making it one of the largest infrastructure projects currently under way in Morocco.
Alongside the high-speed rail connection, plans also call for a renovated airport express service, known as Al Bidaoui, linking Casa-Port station to Mohammed V Airport with trains running every 15 minutes.
