The rail transport sector… transported 26.4 million passengers in 6 months

Heba Press

The number of passengers carried by the National Railways Office reached 26.4 million people in the first half of 2024, an increase of 7 percent compared to the same period last year.

The National Railways Office explained, in a statement, that this activity achieved a turnover of more than 1.26 billion dirhams, up 8% compared to the end of June 2023, noting that the “Al-Buraq” train, which continues to consolidate its position as a symbol of sustainable transport and a locomotive of change, it transported more than 2.6 million passengers in the first half of 2024 (an increase of 14% over one year).

As for freight transport, it saw an improvement in the quantities transported by 32 percent to 9 million tons, supported mainly by the good performance of phosphate transport, which increased by 68 percent compared to the first half of 2023. The number of freight and phosphate transactions was also recorded up by 23% to 815 million dirhams.

Thus, the number of transactions increased by 16% to reach more than 2.55 billion dirhams at the end of last June. In the social field, the number of transactions increased by 12% to reach approximately 2.18 billion dirhams.

As for investment expenditures, which mainly focused on maintaining performance and improving the quality of services, they amounted to 811 million dirhams in the social accounts.

Furthermore, the Office reported a 4% reduction in debt to 41.9 billion dirhams at the end of June 2024 and the start of a new development cycle with structured development projects by 2030 (extension of the high-speed line, the regional express network, the acquisition of new rolling stock, etc.).

The National Railways Office also published its carbon audit for 2023, showing a significant reduction in its carbon footprint, despite the observed increase in train travel, while reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent.