JEDDAH: Authorities have been asked to reduce the Makkah Metro railway fare that is likely to be fixed at SR250.
“The proposed fare of SR250 to be paid by each pilgrim using the railway is very high. It should be reduced to SR90,” said Abdul Qader Al-Jabarti, chairman of the Haj Committee.
He said the railway is being established with the financial support of the government to serve pilgrims. He said the SR250 fee would increase the expenditures of Haj companies by 5 percent.
Al-Jabarti said a committee has been formed to fix the fare for the new railway, the first phase of which would be ready before the Haj this year. “We are awaiting the decision of the committee,” he said.
He said more than 150,000 pilgrims from Saudi Arabia and other GCC countries would use the facility during the first phase. “These pilgrims account for 73 percent of domestic pilgrims,” he pointed out.
Al-Jabarti said all pilgrims including locals and foreigners would use the railway during the second phase of the project. The railway will have nine stations in Mina, Arafat and Muzdalifa.
Work on the project began two years ago in the southern parts of the holy sites where majority of pilgrims from Saudi Arabia as well as Gulf countries are accommodated. The rail is constructed parallel to the pedestrian road so that pilgrim tents in Mina are not disturbed.
[Source: Arab News]
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