How Morocco Became Home To Al Boraq - The Fastest Train in Africa
Al-Boraq is a 323-kilometer-long high-speed rail service between Casablanca and Tangier, operated by ONCF in Morocco. The first of its kind on the African continent, the high-speed service was inaugurated on 15 November 2018 by King Mohammed the VI of Morocco following over a decade of planning and construction by Moroccan national railway company ONCF. It is the first phase of what is planned to eventually be a 1,500 kilometers high-speed rail network in Morocco. Al Boraq trains operate over a dedicated high-speed line reaching speeds of up to 320km/hr on the 186 km sector between Tangier and Kenitra. From Kenitra trains operate over an upgraded mainline for the final 137 km through Morocco’s most populous corridor via Rabat to Casablanca. King Mohammed the VI named the high-speed service Al Boraq, in reference to the mythical creature that transported the Islamic prophets, notably the prophet Muhammad from Mecca to Jerusalem during the night journey. Before we go further into seeing how Morocco became home to Al Borag, permit me welcome you to Positive Africa. Here on this channel, our core focus is to push out positive vibes about the African continent by means of information and Education. Consider subscribing and turning on the post notification bell if you are new so you never miss out on any of our videos. How Morocco became home to Al Boraq. Early studies into the feasibility of high-speed rail in Morocco began in 2003, and by 2006 the route between Tangier and Kenitra had been identified as being among the first lines to be constructed. In 2007, preliminary agreements to manage the project had been signed, and ONCF announced plans to purchase 18 Alstom trainsets. In 2008, ONCF said that it planned to begin construction that year, with operations to begin in 2013. Financing was not finalized until February 2010, when ONCF signed agreements worth 20 billion Moroccan Dirhams. Direct investments came from the Moroccan government, which allocated 4.8 billion Dirhams to the project, and European sources, which invested a total of 1.9 billion Dirhams, while the remaining 12.3 billion came from commercial loans. 10 billion was planned to be spent on infrastructure, with 5.6 billion going to supporting equipment and 4.4 billion to rolling stock. At the time, work was expected to start in mid-2010, with service beginning in December 2015. In December 2010, ONCF signed a final agreement to purchase 14 Alstom Euroduplex trainsets. Following further delays, construction of the line began on the 29th of September 2011, when a ceremonial groundbreaking took place in Tangier. On September 25th, 2012, construction began on a project to increase capacity on the trackage between Kenitra and Casablanca by constructing a dedicated freight track in the existing right of way, allowing for passenger trains to access Casablanca from the high-speed line to Tangier. In addition to the rail construction, stations in four locations namely; Tangiers, Kenitra, Rabat/Agdal, and Casablanca were either constructed from the ground up or rebuilt from existing facilities. On June 19th, 2015, rolling stock deliveries began with the arrival of the first trainset in Tangier. In September, the service facility for the trains in Tangier was completed and a joint venture between ONCF and French rail operator SNCF was established to maintain the trains for a 15-year contract. In February 2017, testing of the trains at revenue speeds began; in which an African rail speed record of 357 kilometers per hour was set. #AlBoraq #FastestTrainInAfrica Thanks for watching POSITIVE AFRICA, We are #Africa and we are proud to be. All our videos are aimed at Educating, Informing, Reporting, Reviewing, Criticizing & Ranking everything #African. Our content includes: #africanews #africalist #Africanpopculture #Africaentertainment #Afrcicanmusic #Africanculture #Africainterviews #AfricaSpeeches #Africanpolitics & #Panafrican If you love what I do and would want me to do better, you can support me here: 👇🏽👇🏽👇🏽 https://paypal.me/DBASatwa?locale.x=e... Email us @mathderson2345@gmail.com for News Tips, content submission, ads partnership, collabos, sponsorship or content issues. We are Africa!!! #Algeria #Angola #Benin #Botswana #BurkinaFaso #Burundi #CapeVerde #Cameroon #CentralAfricanRepublic #CAR #Chad #Comoros #DRCongo #Congo #IvoryCoast #Djibouti #Egypt #EquatorialGuinea #Eritrea #Eswatini #Swaziland #Ethiopia #Gabon #Gambia #Ghana #Guinea #GuineaBissau #Kenya #Lesotho #Liberia #Libya #Madagascar #Malawi #Mali #Mauritania #Mauritius #Morocco #Mozambique #Namibia #Niger #Nigeria #Rwanda #SaoTomePrincipe #Senegal #Seychelles #SierraLeone #Somalia #SouthAfrica #SouthSudan #Sudan #Tanzania #Togo #Tunisia #Uganda #Zambia #Zimbabwe #AfricaUnion #AU
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