The Casablanca Tramway is the second modern tram system in Morocco, after theRabat–Salé tramway, but is longer and has more stations.
It was first opened by KingMuhammad VI on 12 December 2012. At that time, it consisted of one 31-kilometre (19 mi) Y-shaped line with 48 stops, connectingSidi Moumen in the east withAin Diab and theFacultés district in the west. The line forked toward Ain Diab andFacultés after Abdelmoumen Station.
A second line was opened on 24 January 2019. It connectsSidi Bernoussi to Ain Diab, using the segment of the previously existing line from the split to Ain Diab. Line 1 was also extended fromFacultés to Lissasfa.[3]
Another two lines, T3 and T4, were inaugurated on 23 September 2024.[4]
Project management on the first line was provided by Casablanca Transports en Site Aménagé ("Casa Transports"), a limited company created for the purpose in March 2009. Stakeholders were the Ministry of Finance & the Interior, local government (theGrand Casablanca regional government, the Casablancapréfecture and Casablanca urban commune), and several institutional investors (King Hassan II, CDG Capital,Banque Populaire du Maroc, andONCF). Casa Transports awarded the construction contract to a global group headed by the French groupSystra.Project support was subcontracted to the Spanish group Ayesa Tecnología.[5]
Preparatory work started in 2009, with the construction of the first line starting in 2010.[6] The line was inaugurated on 12 December 2012 byKing Mohammed VI, with French Prime MinisterJean-Marc Ayrault in attendance. Commercial services started the next day.[7][8]
The 20 km (12 mi) of Zones 1 and 3 were constructed byYapı Merkezi, and the 10 km (6.2 mi) of Zone 2 byColas Rail.
As of 2025[update], Casablanca Tramway Line 1 serves 36 stations between termini in Sidi Moumen and Lissasfa.[3] The line is 23.5 km (14.6 mi) long and takes 73 minutes from one end to the other.[9] It opened in December 2012 and was extended in January 2019.[3]
As of 2025[update], Casablanca Tramway Line 3 serves 20 stations between termini in Hay Al Wahda and Casa-Port railway station.[3] The line is 14 km (8.7 mi) long and has a frequency of 5–10 minutes.
As of 2025[update], Casablanca Tramway Line 4 serves 19 stations between termini in Mohammed Erradi Avenue and Arab League Park. The line is 12.5 km (7.8 mi) long and an extension to Hassan II Mosque through Moulay Youssef Boulevard is in study.
Travel time between termini is around 69 minutes from Facultés and 77 minutes from Hay Hassani. With a 75% priority at junctions, the average speed comes close to 19 kilometres per hour (12 mph). On weekdays, the tramway runs from 06:30 to 22:00 and at weekends it runs from 06:30 to 23:30. Service averages were planned to be every4+1⁄2 minutes in peak hours and8+1⁄2 minutes off-peak.[12]
Casa Transport awarded a five-year contract to operate the tramway to the CasaTram consortium ofRATP Group,Caisse de dépôt et de gestion and Transinvest as partners.[13][14] In January 2016 RATP Group became the sole shareholder.[15]
Following a competitive tender process, RATP Group was awarded a further contract until December 2029 having beaten bids from aNational Express /ALSA /ONCF consortium andTransdev.[16][17][18]
Engie Ineo and Engie Cofely Morocco supplied signaling and other systems for Line 2 as well as an extension of Line 1.[19][20]
The first type of station track layouts is the most common with two tracks and a side platform for each one (but with a joint single track at the end since the station is a terminus).
When the tramway first opened it was operated by 74Alstom Citadis type 302low-floor trams, built by Alstom in France.[21][22][23] The final assembly was completed inReichshoffen, Alsace. Trams have air conditioning and tinted windows, and an information system in both Arabic and French. They run typically in pairs with a total length of 65 metres (213 ft).[24] A further 50 trams were ordrered in 2015 to operate Line T2.[25][26]
In July 2017, Alstom,Bombardier /CAF,CRRC Zhuzhou Locomotive andŠkoda Transportation were shortlisted to bid for a contract for 100 trams for Lines T3 and T4.[27] The contract was awarded to Alstom and 66 Citadis X05s were delivered, which run in coupled pairs capable of carrying up to 630 passengers.[1]
Ticket prices are subsidised by the Moroccan government and the city of Casablanca, and set at aflat rate of 8dirhams per journey, with a weeklyseason ticket at 60 dirhams and a monthly season ticket at 230 dirhams. Fares are paid by a papersmart card at turnstiles on each station platform.[28] Students get a reduced monthly season ticket of 150 dirhams.[28] A combined tram and bus fare is being considered.[when?]
In the first month of service, between 40,000 and 45,000 passengers used the service each day, on average.[29] A survey in June 2013 recorded 70,000 commuters.[30] By 2013, the tramway had met its objectives by carrying over 100,000 passengers a day.[31] From 2015, 255,000 passengers a day are expected on Line T1.[30]
Tramway operations have resulted in many accidents: in the first 13 months, 180 accidents were reported.[32][33]
On 1 April 2013, a lorry hit a tramcar at full speed. Both the lorry and tram drivers were injured, according to a witness. The impact was so hard that part of the tram was derailed.[34][35]
Projected plan of the Casablanca Tramway network in conjunction withcommuter rail andrapid transit buses for the period 2022–2030 (presented February 2017).
TheSchéma directeur d'aménagement urbain (SDAU, "Master plan of the Director of urban planning")[10] and thePlan de déplacement urbain (PDU, "Urban transport plan")[11] forGreater Casablanca foresee a final network of 4 tramway lines, two traversal (T1, T2) and two radial (T3, T4). These lines will interchange with the now cancelledCasablanca Metro and the operationalAl Bidaoui suburban railways.[10][11] Casablanca will have a network totalling 76 route km (47+1⁄4 route mi), costing 5.9 billion dirhams.[30]
^"Casa Tramway".casa-tram.ma/ (in Arabic). Retrieved21 May 2019.
^abcAllal, Sakrouhi (October 2008)."Schéma directeur d'aménagement urbain" [Master plan of the Director of Urban Planning](PDF).Agence urbaine de Casablanca (in French). Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 12 July 2018. Retrieved23 October 2014.
^abc.Benlahrech, Ryadh (2013). "Le tramway qui facilite le train-train: Spécial Villes" [The tramway which eases commuting].Jeune Afrique (in French) (4): 68.ISSN1950-1285.
Media related toTrams in Casablanca at Wikimedia Commons
