By including a strategic project to link the capital, Amman, with Aqaba—passing through southern cities—within its new investment opportunities and Economic Modernization Vision, the government has taken the first step toward launching the largest developmental venture in the Kingdom's history.
اضافة اعلان
This is especially true considering its future potential to expand toward Jordan's major cities in all directions, ultimately forming the foundation for connecting the Kingdom with neighboring Arab countries.
The project will create a qualitative leap, stimulating key economic sectors such as construction, industry, logistics, and support services throughout its construction and operational phases.
It will also enhance the competitiveness of transport, tourism, and other sectors while generating thousands of jobs, serving as a genuine tool to combat unemployment.
The details speak of a project that will form the backbone of a sustainable national transport network in record time. Linking Amman with Aqaba via a high-speed rail network will offer travelers—be they citizens, tourists, or businesspeople—the chance to shorten the journey time, reaching Aqaba or vice versa in just one hour and five minutes, compared to the current over four hours by road.
The project's economic feasibility is high, particularly when considering the rising operational costs of traditional road transport and global fuel price increases.
The project also carries significant socio-developmental dimensions. It will enable Jordanian families and tourists to undertake near-daily trips, enjoying the charm of Aqaba and returning to Amman in the evening, free from the burden of a strenuous 4+ hour drive each way.
It will also ensure a constant flow of passengers between the capital and southern cities around the clock, paving the way for transforming these cities into attractive investment hubs.
The project's importance is further underscored by the tremendous positive impact expected on the tourism sector. Visitors to Jordan, especially from Europe and North America, will find a mode of transport that aligns with their daily lifestyles, as high-speed trains are often their preferred choice for travel in their home countries.
Informed sources reported that a high-level delegation from the French giant, Alstom—one of the world's largest and leading companies specializing in developing and manufacturing railway systems, producing high-speed trains (like the TGV), while maintaining a global presence in more than 60 countries—recently visited Jordan. The delegation met with senior officials to discuss the group's interest in implementing the project, which is expected to take four to five years.
Under a Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) model, the best option for such mega-projects, the French company would operate and manage the project for a government-defined period before ownership transfers to the state—a significant future source of revenue for the national treasury. The value of the French expertise lies in its globally recognized technology, renowned for having the most reliable safety systems, energy efficiency, and environmental sustainability standards.
While the construction and operation of the railways come with a multi-billion-dollar price tag, the economic return is exponentially greater when considering the thousands of direct and indirect jobs it will create and the support services it will require.
Furthermore, such projects translate into investment opportunities for Jordan's financial sectors, foremost its banks and investment funds, in addition to government and private financing entities regionally and internationally.
The venture holds immense strategic value with multifaceted benefits and will ultimately strengthen the Kingdom's position on the regional and global investment, tourism, industry, and trade map.
Crucially, the treasury will bear no cost for the high-speed rail projects if the government can successfully negotiate their implementation on a BOT basis. The government may also consider tax exemptions and incentives to attract investors.
In conclusion, if the government succeeds in turning the high-speed rail dream into a tangible reality, it will be etched in history as a transformative masterpiece, cementing its legacy as the driving force behind Jordan's meteoric rise.
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