Turkey, Syria, Jordan Sign Agreement to Restore Hejaz Railway
The national governments of Turkey, Syria and Jordan have signed an agreement to restore the historic Hejaz Railway.
Restoration agreement
The restoration agreement was signed in the Jordanian capital of Amman by government officials from Turkey, Syria and Jordan, who pledged to bring the defunct Middle Eastern railway line back to its former glory.
Turkish Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloğlu proudly announced that “the historic Hejaz Railway is being revived”, with the Turkish government pledging to assist Syria in completing the missing 30 kilometres (18.6 miles) of railway infrastructure on the Syrian section of the Hejaz Railway.
Jordan, in turn, pledged to assist Syria with the maintenance and repair of its fleet of locomotives.
Mr Uraloğlu said: “While preserving our region’s historical heritage, we are also establishing strong cooperation in international transport corridors.
“We will continue to work toward a shared future in transportation.”
Freight transport
The restoration agreement between Turkey, Syria and Jordan is primarily focused on the potential for freight transport along the Hejaz Railway.
As part of the deal, the three countries plan to carry out joint technical studies aimed at improving Turkey’s access to the Red Sea through the Port of Aqaba in Jordan.
Currently, only two sections of the Hejaz Railway are fully operational, and they are used exclusively for freight traffic.
These are the stretch between Damascus and Amman, and the section in southern Jordan from Ma’an to Aqaba, where phosphate is transported from the mines to the port in the Gulf of Aqaba.
Hejaz railway
The Hejaz Railway, built in the early 20th century when the entire region was part of the Ottoman Empire, is one of the world’s most historic railway lines.
Linking Damascus with Medina, the Hejaz Railway was primarily intended to transport goods and soldiers, helping the Ottoman Empire maintain a tight grip over what are now the independent countries of Jordan and Syria.
The Hejaz Railway was also used to transport pilgrims to the holy Islamic cities of Medina and Mecca, although this was secondary to the line’s military significance.
At its heyday, the Hejaz Railway also included branch lines to the ports of Haifa and Aqaba.
In Damascus, the Hejaz Railway linked to the wider Ottoman railway network, allowing one to travel all the way from Istanbul’s Haydarpaşa station on the banks of the Bosphorus to Medina by train.
The massive tourism potential of the Hejaz Railway
On my travels, I visited some of the historic sites of the Hejaz Railway, including the old train stations in Amman and Medina, both of which are sadly no longer in use.
I couldn’t help but think of the huge tourism potential of the Hejaz Railway, as this historic rail link continues to captivate the imaginations of those interested in history and railways.
The Hejaz Railway still lives on, partly thanks to the fame of Lawrence of Arabia.
Together with local Arab tribesmen, Lawrence of Arabia frequently ambushed Ottoman trains carrying troops, ammunition, and supplies to the front in the Middle Eastern theatre of the First World War.
Besides its history, the Hejaz Railway offers some amazing scenery for travellers along the route.
If Saudi Arabia were to join Turkey, Syria, and Jordan, they could operate luxury trains along the Hejaz Railway all the way from Istanbul to Medina.
Affluent passengers could travel in railway carriages that evoke the atmosphere of the Ottoman Empire while enjoying all modern luxuries, taking in a spectacular tour of Turkey and the Middle East.
The train could stop in historic cities such as Aleppo, Damascus, and Amman, and tourists could easily be transported from the train to archaeological sites along the route, including Apamea, the Krak des Chevaliers, and Petra.
Besides luxury train tours, there is also clear potential to run scheduled passenger services between major cities such as Damascus, Amman, and Medina, provided the Hejaz Railway is properly restored with capacity for both freight and passenger transport.
Of course, much of this would depend on the security situation in Syria, which remains highly volatile.
Where are the Saudis?
One thing I can’t wrap my head around is why the Saudi government – which has invested so much effort in opening up their country to tourism and pouring money into all kinds of spectacular (yet controversial) projects such as The Line and NEOM – isn’t leading the effort to restore the Hejaz Railway.
If there is one tourism project that would align perfectly with Saudi Arabia’s goal of opening up the country to tourism while respecting its heritage and Islamic tradition, it is restoring the Hejaz Railway to its former glory.
Luxury trains on a fully restored Hejaz Railway would not just attract some random high-spending tourists, but affluent travellers genuinely interested in Saudi Arabia’s rich history and Islamic tradition.
Compared to other Saudi tourism projects, it would be far more aligned with these values rather than those of a Dubai-style nouveau riche crowd, which seems to be the model they are currently trying to emulate.
Although money hardly seems to be an issue for the Saudi leaders, restoring the Hejaz Railway would also be relatively inexpensive compared to other projects the country is currently undertaking.
It’s great that you can now travel by a modern high-speed train from Jeddah to Medina, and that non-Muslims can nowadays visit Medina (the second-holiest city in Islam), which was completely off-limits until very recently.
I certainly enjoyed my visit to Medina and my experiences with Saudi hospitality – but just imagine being able to travel to Saudi Arabia by train all the way from Istanbul along the Hejaz Railway! It would appeal to millions.
The best of it is that the Saudis wouldn’t even have to wait until restoration work in Syria is completed and the war-torn country is more stable, so what is stopping them from already teaming up with the Jordanians to restore the southernmost section of the Hejaz Railway?
Conclusion
Turkey, Syria, and Jordan are teaming up to restore the Hejaz Railway to its former historic glory.
Although the potential for freight transport is the primary focus of the restoration project, the three countries would be wise to also explore the significant opportunities for passenger services and tourism.
