Independent Online
Reuters
French President Emmanuel Macron (L) and Moroccan King Mohammed VI (R) shake hands as they inaugurate a high-speed line at Rabat train station. Picture: Christophe Archambault/AFP
Rabat – Morocco inaugurated on Thursday Africa’s fastest train which will halve travelling time between the commercial and industrial hubs of Casablanca and Tangier.
After seven years of work on the high-speed railway line, King Mohammed VI and French President Emmanuel Macron boarded the train for the inaugural trip from Tangier to the capital Rabat.
The train, which was tested at a speed of 357km (222 miles) per hour and is planned to run at 320km/h, will more than halve the 200km Casablanca-Tangier journey to around two hours. It is about twice as fast as South Africa’s high-speed Gautrain linking Johannesburg’s international airport to the city’s financial district Sandton.
The high-speed line was completed at a total cost of 22.9 billion dirhams ($2.4 billion), according to state news agency MAP. Transport officials were not immediately available for comment.
