Saudi Railways Organization
Passenger train on the Dammam-Riyadh Line.
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Native name
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المؤسسة العامة للخطوط الحديدية |
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| Founded | 13 May 1966 |
| Headquarters | Dammam railway station, Fatema Al Zahra St, Abdullah Fuad, Dammam, Saudi Arabia |
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Key people
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| Revenue | SAR 535 million (2014) |
| Website | saudirailways |
The Saudi Railways Organization (SRO) is one of two state-owned companies that operates Saudi Arabia's rail network. The SRO operates a network of railways with a total length of approximately 1,380 kilometers. The network consists of two main lines. A 449 km passenger line that links Dammam with Riyadh, and a 556 km freight line that connects the King Abdul Aziz Port in Dammam with Riyadh In addition, about 373 km of auxiliary lines branch from SRO's main lines and connect some industrial and agricultural areas, and military sites, with export ports and residential areas.
There are plans to extend the network to the Red Sea port of Jeddah and, eventually to the borders of Jordan, Yemen, and perhaps all the way to Egypt.
The first railway in modern Saudi Arabia was the Hejaz Railway, from the border of Jordan to Medina. This 1,050 mm (3 ft 5 11⁄32 in) narrow gauge railway opened in 1908, but closed in 1920.
Modern railways were introduced in Saudi Arabia after World War II, to facilitate the transport of goods for the Arabian American Oil Company, or Aramco (now Saudi Aramco), from ports located on the coast of the Persian Gulf to warehouses in Dhahran. Construction began in September 1947, and the first line was inaugurated on 20 October 1951. It was initially run by Aramco, but subsequently transferred to the Ministry of Finance, during which time it was known as the Railway Department. On 13 May 1966, the Saudi government issued a royal decree establishing the Saudi Railways Organization (SRO) to operate the railway system. Several development projects have been completed since then, including an extension of the line to Riyadh, construction of several passenger terminals and the opening of a dry port in Riyadh.
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