The Oran Tramway Project

The city of Oran is located in the northwestern region of Algeria and has grown into a significant commercial port. It has a large industrial sector and in the last few years, transportation in the city has become a major concern. Even though buses were added to alleviate the transportation problems, it still was not sufficient to cope with the high numbers of students and local residents traveling to work and back. At the end of 2005, authorities starting working on the Oran Tramway project; getting designs and opening the project for construction tenders.

The design for the Oran Tramway will create a line that stretches across approximately nineteen kilometers and will have thirty-one stations. Authorities have ensured that the tramway will service all the major destinations in the city such as the private clinics, the University of Sciences and Technology, the city center, the Law courts, the University Es-Senia and the Oran Es Senia Airport. Linking the major inner city destinations will shorten traveling distances and lighten traffic congestion. Work on the tramway is expected to start in December 2007 and should take an estimated twenty-six months to complete.

It was announced earlier this week that the company Alstom (French Engineering Firm) will head the consortium of companies working on the project. Two Spanish firms, namely Isolux Ingenieria and Corsan-Corviam Construccion, have been selected to assist Alstom on the construction of the tramway. The project has a price tag of 345 million Euros, but will make Oran the second city in Algeria, the first being Algiers, to have a tramway constructed in the city.

If the project runs smoothly, commuters can look forward to making use of the Oran Tramway by late 2009, or early 2010. The tramway will bring great relief to the lack of transportation in the city and benefit the thousands of commuters who rely on public transportation to reach their destinations. This challenging project is definitely a vital addition to the future of this growing city and its service delivery. No doubt many residents of Oran will be counting down the days until the Oran Tramway is completed.