Metro to Link with Bus Routes

TDT | Manama

Email: mail@newsofbahrain.com

Bahrain’s planned electric urban rail system will work with bus routes and cycle paths, Transport and Telecommunications, His Excellency Minister Shaikh Abdulla bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, said, as work continues to ready the first metro route and bus use keeps rising.

In a written reply to questions from MP Dr Munir Seroor, the minister said public bus use rose by 17pc in 2023, followed by 1pc in 2024 and 3pc in 2025. Total trips last year reached 12.1 million.

The Ministry expects more people to use public transport in the next few years as it runs campaigns to encourage take-up and expands the network step by step.

Congestion

Shaikh Abdulla said a wider mass transit network would bring in more users and ease road congestion, above all at peak hours and on holidays. He said the Bahrain Metro was a key part of that plan.

“The Bahrain Metro project is one of the main future parts of these efforts,” he said. “It will help public transport carry more passengers through a network covering key parts of the kingdom and linking the airport with commercial, residential and educational areas.”

He said the electric urban rail network was one of the main schemes handled by the ministry, adding that work was still being done to ready the route for the first phase in line with the approved plan.

“This stage needs careful planning and joined-up work with all concerned bodies before building can begin,” he said. “That is to make sure the route is prepared in the best way.”

Scheme

On cost, the minister said the scheme would be delivered in partnership with the private sector, but no final figure could yet be given because the design had not been completed and market and economic conditions were still changing.

“The electric urban rail system will be linked with the public bus network and cycle paths,” he said. “This will help cut travel times, make getting around easier for citizens and residents, and reduce reliance on private cars.”

He said that would support Bahrain’s shift towards a cleaner and more effective transport system.