Casablanca Mayor, Mohamed Sajid, has announced that construction of the sky train will begin in January 2014 and is scheduled for completion in late 2016. The route will link Sidi Moumen and Hay Moulay Rachid to the downtown area and go up to the Bourgogne neighbourhood. The cost of the 15 to 18 kilometre suspended metro is 9 billion dirhams (US42.4 billion), to be partially financed by the French Development Agency (AFD).
The tracks will be built on concrete arches, allowing commuters to avoid cross-town traffic. The Moroccan city is making progress and its infrastructure and transportation network are improving. Casablanca is certainly not as it was 20 years ago and many residents have welcomed the idea of linking shantytowns to modern neighbourhoods.
Last December saw the opening of the 31kilometre Casablanca tramway line but the congestion problem did not end. This is because it can only accommodate 250,000 passengers each day. The proposed metro, however, will be able to carry up to 400,000 passengers daily.
