Aqaba Railway Corporation

The Aqababahn is a railway line that was built to complement the network of Hedschasbahn in Jordan. It serves the transport of phosphate from the phosphate mines of Abiad and Wadi el Hassa to the port of Aqaba. The term is also used for the operating company, the Railway Cooperation phosphate used, the drives on both this new line as well as a piece of the Hedjaz Railway.

Importance

A branch line of the Hedjaz Railway was yet to be realized in the context of the construction of the main line in the early 20th century. But that was vetoed by Britain, which classified it as an economic competitor to the Suez Canal, and especially as a military threat of the channel. In order to prevent the construction was even ascended in a military Drohgeste in May 1906, the British Mediterranean Fleet from the Dardanelles and Istanbul before. Another attempt was made during the Second World War with the project of railway Ma'an - Aqaba, the construction of which indeed begun, but which was never completed. The Aqababahn was so taken until seventy years after the first attempt to build them into operation.

Construction

After basic studies on a suitable system for this transport performance, Jordan opted for a rail link, the

  • The route section of the original route of the Hedjaz Railway between the stations Faraifa and Batn al - Ghul uses and
  • From Batn al - Ghul to Aqaba a new line required.

1965 put a German engineering firm with the help of the German Federal Railroad before an opinion on different routes. The branch line Batn al - Ghul - Aqaba was built on founding in 1972, restored the original route of the Hedjaz Railway in the used section. The phosphate mines were sidings.

The section Faraifa - Batn al - Ghul is still the property of the Hedjaz Railway, an inalienable religious endowment ( waqf ), and is leased for operation by the phosphate Railway Cooperation.

The project was financed with a long-term loan from the Reconstruction Loan to Jordan within the framework of German development aid over 232.7 million DM

On October 6, 1975, the then- Crown Prince Hassan ibn Talal of Jordan opened the web.

Operation

The traffic is operated by the phosphate Railway Cooperation with about 800 man staff.

The entire route is backed up by light signals. The chainage is from Aqaba al - Hidschaziyya ( Hattiyya ) and counts towards Aqaba, while the local, historical kilometer is used in the rest of the traffic section Hedschasbahn.

On the route today operate daily three to six pairs of trains in double traction with a length up to 32 cars. There are three different types of wagons, which each hold 40-46 tons of phosphate. Trips by steam locomotives are carried out on the route between Aqaba and Wadi Rum in demand.

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