Morocco has begun testing double-decker train cars for the continent’s first high-speed rail line, with the new trains designed to reach speeds of up to 200 mph.
The planned route will link Tangier and Casablanca, cutting travel time significantly. A trip that currently takes about 3.5 hours by car or roughly five hours by conventional rail will be reduced to just over two hours once the high-speed service is operational. The project, with an estimated cost near $2 billion, aims for completion in 2018 and is backed by funding from Morocco as well as partners including France, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates.
Fares are expected to exceed the current one-way price of about $20, but officials emphasize affordability for Moroccan passengers. Mohamed Rabie Khlie, director general of ONCF, Morocco’s national railway operator, said the service is being designed with local purchasing power in mind.
“We will run trains intended for Moroccans and thus adapted to the purchasing power of Moroccans,” Rabie Khlie said in a statement. “We do not want a train reserved for high-end customers.”
Today’s rail network serves roughly three million passengers annually; authorities anticipate ridership will grow once the high-speed line begins operations, improving connectivity and travel options between major Moroccan cities.