The ex-Director General of Al-Haramain Express Train Project Dr. Bassam Ghulman revealed that the total cost of the project exceeded SR. 60 Milliards indicating that 138 bridges and 850 water discharge channels were implemented in addition to 60 million cubic meters of excavation works, 63 million cubic meters of cutting and filling works. He added that 35 electric trains including two engines and 13 trailers were manufactured and supplied to the project, the capacity of each train which will operate at speed of 300 km/hour is 417 passengers. 

He added, during his scientific lecture presented at the theatre of the College of Engineering and Islamic Architecture at the university campus in Abdyia in the presence of the College Dean Dr. Hamza Ghulman, that total length of railway route which is 450 km was completed to link Makkah with Madinah passing through Jeddah and Rabigh. The project works he said included designing and implementing 4 train stations in Makkah, Jeddah, King Abdullah Economic City at Rabigh and Madinah besides a fifth station inside King Abdul-Aziz new Airport. Thanks to Allah in the first place, the project wouldn't come to light without the generous support of the government of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and the support provided by the emirates of Makkah and Al-Madinah.    

He further said that the project has many advantages including; provision of fast, convenient and secure transportation mean for citizens, residents,  pilgrims and Umrah performers, elimination of slums in the trains route, and provision of several job opportunities for the sons of the nation. Additionally, he said the project will provide more than 2000 job opportunities for males and females during the coming operation period in the technical, financial and administrative fields. 

He added that during the project implementation phase, 8 main intersections were rehabilitated in Al-Haramain Road.  "When the project is fully operational, 7 trains can be run in the same time between Makkah and Jeddah, a trip every 10 minutes and two trains between Makkah and Madinah, a trip every 30 minutes", he expounded saying that 12 trains can be run in one hour between the different stations and that there are different operational plans for each season. 

All the more, he explained that train running time is as following; 21 minutes between Makkah and Jeddah,  14 minutes between Jeddah and King Abdul-Aziz airport, 36 minutes between King Abdul-Aziz airport and Rabigh, 60 minutes between Rabigh and Madinah.  He expected the train to transport 12 thousand passengers per hour between Makkah and Madinah in the both directions during the first operational period. He turned the attention of the audience that the recent rains proved the quality of the project. 

For his part, the Dean of the College of Engineering and Islamic Architecture Dr. Hamza Ghulman welcomed the  ex-Director General of Al-Haramain Express Train Project  Dr. Bassam Ghulman in the college dubbing him as one of the expert the college  and the university are proud of for serving his country  while supervising the project.