MOROCCO IS ACCELERATING! feature - Alstom

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feature
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occasionally due to a lack of means. The train
is therefore in the process of becoming
an extremely credible alternative to the car,
particularly in a context of rising petrol prices.
The results have not taken long in coming.
Between 2002 and 2008, passenger traffi c
surged from 14 to 28 million passengers
annually. A doubling rarely seen in the rail
world! 202 trains now cross the territory
every day, compared with 110 in 2005.
Nevertheless, the network has gained a mere
400 kilometres since 1956.
A major leap into the future
The Moroccan population, which is extremely
young, is growing rapidly (ref. column
page 11). Better educated, longing to succeed
and open to the world, it would like to be
ever more mobile. The forecast for changes
in rail ridership is moreover impressive:
30 million passengers in 2010, 50 million
in 2015 and 174 million in 2050.
How is the State planning to cope
with this forecasted explosion? By taking
a major decision, an important fi rst for
the African continent: to equip Morocco
with very high-speed lines. If these are
to modernise the network and bring
the Kingdom’s strategic poles nearer
to each other, it is advisable to choose
the best technology in the world…
From 2015, the LGV Atlantic will connect
in 2 hours 10 minutes, instead
of 4 hours 10 minutes, the three main cities
of the north-south-axis: Tangiers-Rabat-
Casablanca. In a second phase, Marrakech
will be brought to within 1 hour 15 minutes
of Casablanca compared with 3 hours 30
minutes today. The line will then be extended
to Agadir, with a branch line to Essaouira.
By 2030, the LGV Trans-Maghreb will
connect Casablanca with Oujda in just
3 hours, via Meknes and Fes.
Through this decisive choice, Morocco
is making the train a key tool to develop
its territory and structure its economy.
High speed will enable the ONCF to transport
rapidly and in safety 120 million Moroccans
and tourists each year. It will also contribute
to developing the country’s freight business,
whose economic model is changing radically.
The state operator intends to become a key
actor in Moroccan logistics by diversifying
goods transport, until now focused
on phosphates (in 2005, 78% of freight
volume). It has reorganised the logistics chain
and services to divert from road the major
volume of container traffi c generated by