MOROCCO: Two extensions to Line 2 of the Rabat-Salé tram network were opened for revenue service on February 16, more than two years later than originally planned.
Line 2 has been extended by 2·4 km southwest from Hôpital Moulay Youssef to Yacoub Al Mansour, adding 4 new stops, and east by 4·6 km from Hassan II to Hôpital Moulay Abdellah, with 8 stops.
Construction of the two extensions was launched by King Mohammed VI in October 2017, and the work has been completed at a cost of 1·7bn dirhams. They take the network to a total length of 27 km with 43 stops, and are projected to increase ridership by 40 000 passengers/day to a total of 150 000.
An additional 22 Alstom Citadis trams were ordered in September 2017 to augment the existing 44-strong fleet. The first two vehicles were delivered in June 2019. The 32·5 m long trams operate coupled in pairs giving a combined capacity of 606 passengers. The enlarged fleet will allow services to operate at 8 min headways on Line 1 and 9 min on Line 2.
