 | |
 Map of the current Moroccan railway and the new high speed line. | |
 ONCF commuter train. | |
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | 8, rue Abderrahmane El Ghafiki,Rabat - Agdal |
| Reporting mark | ONCF |
| Locale | Morocco |
| Dates of operation | 1963–present |
| Predecessor | Compagnie des chemins de Fer du Maroc ("CFM"); Compagnie franco-espagnole du chemin de fer de Tanger à Fès ("TF") |
| Technical | |
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) |
| Length | 2,067 km (1,284 mi) |
| Other | |
| Website | www.oncf.ma |
ONCF (fromFrench:Office National des Chemins de Fer;Arabic:المكتب الوطني للسكك الحديديةal-Maktab al-Waṭaniyy lis-Sikak al-Ḥadīdiyyah;Moroccan National Railways Office) isMorocco's national railway operator. ONCF is a state-owned company that is under the control of theMinistry of Equipment, Transport and Logistics and is responsible for all passenger and freight traffic on the national railway network. The company is also responsible for building and maintaining the rail infrastructure.[1]
The ONCF employs around 7,845 employees and has a network of 3,600 km, all1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in)standard gauge of which 1,300 km is electrified (2015). The general director of ONCF is Mohamed Rabie Khlie.[1][2]
The railways have been state-owned since the formation of ONCF, created in 1963 as a merger of various private companies:
ONCF performs several operations and has as a mission to:[3]
ONCF has undergone several institutional reforms before becoming a state-owned company. Further institutional reforms are expected in order to open the national railway market to competition. Plans were made in 2007 to re-form it into a limited company fully owned by the Moroccan State to be called SMCF (French: Société Marocaine des Chemins de Fer) but this hasn't materialized by the planned deadline in 2012.[4]
The network has a north–south track fromTangier viaRabat andCasablanca toMarrakech. This line connects all major cities along or close to the Atlantic coast. In September 2012, ONCF started upgrading the Casablanca-Kenitra main line to improve capacity.[5]
The other main link is the Northern East to West link fromOujda viaFes andMeknes to Rabat connecting to the N-S tracks in Kenitra.
For the (main) destinations where there is no train service (yet) the ONCF operates their own bus companySupratours offering connecting bus services from the nearest railway station to places likeAgadir,Tétouan orEssaouira[6][7]
A major investment program upgrades and extends the network. In 2009, a branch-line of the E-W link was completed, running fromTaourirt for 100 km toNador. This track runs down from the Rif mountains to sealevel at Nador. Most of the route from Taourirt follows the same route as theNational Road 19. The tracks through Nador are underground and afterNador Ville the track continues to theNador Port inBin Anşār above ground again. This new branch-line is used for both passenger and freight trains with several passenger trains serving Fez, Rabat to Casablanca or to Tanger. There are 6 trains per day: some demanding change at Taourirt wye - others provide direct services up to Casablanca. The night-train (dep. 19:47 from Nador) doesn't even stop at Taourirt[8] and thus doesn't have to change travel-direction.
Another project completed in 2010 is a short-cut between Rabat and Tangier. When completed trains can run directly to Rabat and Casablanca without having to use the longer route via Sidi Kasim. Also in the north a new track is built between Tanger and Ras R'Mel.
Other routes under construction are:
Not yet under construction, but planned are:
The most important project is the development of a "high-speed link" (TGV) from Tangier via Rabat and Casablanca to Marrakech. The main contractor of this project is French companyAlstom. The French presidentNicolas Sarkozy was guest on 29 September 2011 when the actual construction of the line started. The first phase of the project is expected to be completed in 2012[9]
Oujda railway station is the last station for passengers on the east–west link. The lines south of Oujda are for freight only and until the passenger-service starts the link Tanger-Tanger MED is also only operated for freight: mainly for theRenault factory at the port[10]
The company makes a difference between the long-distance "Grandes Lignes", high-speed shuttle trains between Rabat and Casablanca, Urban transport in the Casablanca region and the "train by road" via daughter-company Supratours[11]
On the mainline (Grand Lignes) several trains are operated per day. In the first class all chairs are assigned seats. On three main routes the ONCF operate special night trains with either full beds in private rooms of couchettes. On the Oujda-Casablanca route they run a "hotel train" which only offers beds and couchettes, no seats. These "Voyage de Nuit" is available on:[12]
And on the route Tangier-Nador vv there is no official "night train" with beds or couchettes, but there is a night service from Tangier to Oujda or Nador[13]
ONCF operates in three main sectors:[14]
The turnover of the ONCF was growing, both in passengers and freight, until the decline of the economy in 2007. The number of passengers is still growing but freight figures are down. The total income on passengers (sold train tickets) and freight was in 2009 2.7 billion dirham.
| item | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Passenger kilometers in million kilometers | 5316 | 5080 | 4819 | 4398 | 4190 | 3820 | 3658 | 3333 | 2987 | 2645 | 2374 |
| Passengers million | 38,1 | 36,0 | 34,0 | 31,0 | 29,6 | 27.5 | 26,1 | 23,6 | 21,0 | 18,5 | 16,5 |
| Freight tons | 36,200 | 37,000 | 37.000 | 36.000 | 25.000 | 30.703 | 35.859 | 34.851 | 34.911 | 32.901 | 30.552 |
| Freight million ton kilometers | 5700 | 5830 | 5976 | 5572 | 4111 | 4986 | 5794 | 5827 | 5919 | 5563 | 5146 |
In September 2006 ONCF proposed ahigh-speed rail connectingTangier toMarrakech which will reduce the time of the journey from around 10 hours to only3+1⁄2 hours.[17][18] This service, if approved, may not be in operation until 2035.In 2007Systra was appointed to design a 350 km/h alignment between Settat and Marrakech.[19]
This first part of theAtlantique high-speed link opened in 2018. It's 186 km long, holds the African rail speed record at 357 km/hr and connects Tangier with Casablanca in 2 hours and 10 minutes (down from 4h45m previously). It was built for 9 million Euros and ONCF projects that it carries 6 million passengers per year.[20]
In December 2010, a contract was signed withAlstom to provide 14 trainsets based on theTGV Duplex.[21][22]
The network that will carry the high-speed-network, from Tangier via Fes to Rabat and Marrakech are currently already electrified. The lines to the east of Fes are diesel powered only and the majority of the track is single: opposite trains pass each other at selected train-stations.
For the Tangier-Casablanca line the ONCF will invest 20 billionMoroccan dirham (approx. US$2.5 bln.). Half of this money is needed to construct the track. From the other half 5.6 bln. dirham is needed for technology around the tracks and the remaining 4.4 bln. is needed for therolling stock.[17]
The funding of this project is coming from the state (4.8 bln. dirham), one billion from theHasan II fund for social and economic development. France and the rest of Europe will donate some 2 billion dirham. The remaining 12.3 billion dirham is funded via loans under favourable conditions[23]
Besides the high-speed link discussed above, the company is also developing other projects, including new rail links and extending the network's reach southwards ofMarrakech.[4] One of the new links recently being constructed is a branch line fromTaourirt toNador. On 10 July 2009 kingMohammed VI of Morocco opened the two new railway stations in Nador and the line to Taourirt[24]
ONCF is a member of the following organizations:
In December 2019 and according to a 2018 agreement, ONCF received the first Prima M4 electric locomotives of 30 more units that will be delivered byAlstom.[25]
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