
With the exception of a railway system,
Jordan
Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Ri ...
has a developed public and private transportation system. There are three international airports in Jordan. The
Hedjaz Jordan Railway
The Hedjaz Jordan Railway is one of the two successor railways to the famous Hedjaz Railway. When the Ottoman Empire collapsed in 1920, the Hedjaz Railway, formerly under Ottoman control, was divided into 2 railways: the Chemin de Fer de Hedjaz ...
runs one passenger train a day each way.
Roadways
In 2009, it was estimated that Jordan had of paved highways. Some of the major highways in Jordan are:
*
Highway 15 (Desert Highway): connects the
Syrian border with
Amman and to the port city of
Aqaba
Aqaba (, also ; ar, العقبة, al-ʿAqaba, al-ʿAgaba, ) is the only coastal city in Jordan and the largest and most populous city on the Gulf of Aqaba. Situated in southernmost Jordan, Aqaba is the administrative centre of the Aqaba Gove ...
on the
Gulf of Aqaba
The Gulf of Aqaba ( ar, خَلِيجُ ٱلْعَقَبَةِ, Khalīj al-ʿAqabah) or Gulf of Eilat ( he, מפרץ אילת, Mifrátz Eilát) is a large gulf at the northern tip of the Red Sea, east of the Sinai Peninsula and west of the Arabi ...
. It is a four-lane, double carriageway road almost on its entirety, from the Syrian border until the junction with the road to
Petra
Petra ( ar, ٱلْبَتْرَاء, Al-Batrāʾ; grc, Πέτρα, "Rock", Nabataean: ), originally known to its inhabitants as Raqmu or Raqēmō, is an historic and archaeological city in southern Jordan. It is adjacent to the mountain of Ja ...
.
*
Highway 35 (King's Highway): connects
Irbid
Irbid ( ar, إِربِد), known in ancient times as Arabella or Arbela (Άρβηλα in Ancient Greek language, Ancient Greek), is the capital and largest city of the Irbid Governorate. It also has the second largest metropolitan population in ...
in the northern region to
Aqaba
Aqaba (, also ; ar, العقبة, al-ʿAqaba, al-ʿAgaba, ) is the only coastal city in Jordan and the largest and most populous city on the Gulf of Aqaba. Situated in southernmost Jordan, Aqaba is the administrative centre of the Aqaba Gove ...
, it takes the name and route of the
historic King's Highway. It has four lanes on double carriageway on its stretch from
Irbid
Irbid ( ar, إِربِد), known in ancient times as Arabella or Arbela (Άρβηλα in Ancient Greek language, Ancient Greek), is the capital and largest city of the Irbid Governorate. It also has the second largest metropolitan population in ...
until
Amman.
*
Highway 65 (Dead Sea Highway): connects
Aqaba
Aqaba (, also ; ar, العقبة, al-ʿAqaba, al-ʿAgaba, ) is the only coastal city in Jordan and the largest and most populous city on the Gulf of Aqaba. Situated in southernmost Jordan, Aqaba is the administrative centre of the Aqaba Gove ...
to the northwestern region of Jordan.
** The first part of the highway (Safi-Aqaba) was constructed in 1978 as part of the
Red Sea - Dead Sea Access
Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–740 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a seconda ...
. It connected Safi, the south end of Dead Sea to Aqaba, the north point of Red Sea.
*
Jordan Highway: encircles the city of Amman and connects it to
Jerash
Jerash ( ar, جرش ''Ǧaraš''; grc, Γέρασα ''Gérasa'') is a city in northern Jordan. The city is the administrative center of the Jerash Governorate, and has a population of 50,745 as of 2015. It is located north of the capital city ...
and
Irbid
Irbid ( ar, إِربِد), known in ancient times as Arabella or Arbela (Άρβηλα in Ancient Greek language, Ancient Greek), is the capital and largest city of the Irbid Governorate. It also has the second largest metropolitan population in ...
Railways
''Total:'' 507 km - ''
narrow gauge
A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and .
Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller struc ...
'' of (2008)
Railway companies in Jordan are:
*
Hedjaz Jordan Railway
The Hedjaz Jordan Railway is one of the two successor railways to the famous Hedjaz Railway. When the Ottoman Empire collapsed in 1920, the Hedjaz Railway, formerly under Ottoman control, was divided into 2 railways: the Chemin de Fer de Hedjaz ...
: The only passenger railway currently operating in Jordan, connecting
Amman to
Damascus, in
Syria, and passing through
Zarqa
Zarqa ( ar, الزرقاء) is the capital of Zarqa Governorate in Jordan. Its name means "the blue (city)". It had a population of 635,160 inhabitants in 2015, and is the most populous city in Jordan after Amman.
Geography
Zarqa is located in ...
and
Mafraq
Mafraq ( ar, المفرق ''Al-Mafraq'', local dialects: ''Mafrag'' or ''Mafra''; ) is the capital city of Mafraq Governorate in Jordan, located 80 km to the north from the capital Amman in crossroad to Syria to the north and Iraq to the east ...
. It is narrow gauge; the rest of the
Syrian network uses .
*
Aqaba Railway Corporation - phosphate to port of Aqaba
Plans
The Jordanian government has begun acquiring land for new rail routes. Following a study by
BNP Paribas
BNP Paribas is a French international banking group, founded in 2000 from the merger between Banque Nationale de Paris (BNP, "National Bank of Paris") and Paribas, formerly known as the Banque de Paris et des Pays-Bas. The full name of the gro ...
, three routes are planned, which are expected to be tendered later in 2010. The three routes are:
# From the Syrian border, via Zarqa, to the Saudi border; replacing part of the
Hedjaz Railway;
#Connecting the first line to
Aqaba
Aqaba (, also ; ar, العقبة, al-ʿAqaba, al-ʿAgaba, ) is the only coastal city in Jordan and the largest and most populous city on the Gulf of Aqaba. Situated in southernmost Jordan, Aqaba is the administrative centre of the Aqaba Gove ...
, and from Mafraq to Irbid, replacing another part of the
Hedjaz Railway;
#A link to the Iraqi border.
However, in late 2010 the government announced an economic relief package and following the
2011 Jordanian protests it was decided to reduce the expected three year capital investment plan in the national railway network by 72 percent, partly to fund the relief package. Therefore, it is unclear when the ambitions railway expansion plan will be carried out.
There are also plans for a light rail system operating between Amman and Zarqa and metro line in Amman.
Currently, two connected but non-contiguously operated sections of the
Hedjaz Railway exist:
* from
Amman in
Jordan
Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Ri ...
to
Syria, as the "Hedjaz Jordan Railway."
* from
phosphate
In chemistry, a phosphate is an anion, salt, functional group or ester derived from a phosphoric acid. It most commonly means orthophosphate, a derivative of orthophosphoric acid .
The phosphate or orthophosphate ion is derived from phosph ...
mines near
Ma'an
Ma'an ( ar, مَعان, Maʿān) is a city in southern Jordan, southwest of the capital Amman. It serves as the capital of the Ma'an Governorate. Its population was approximately 41,055 in 2015. Civilizations with the name of Ma'an have existe ...
to the
Gulf of Aqaba
The Gulf of Aqaba ( ar, خَلِيجُ ٱلْعَقَبَةِ, Khalīj al-ʿAqabah) or Gulf of Eilat ( he, מפרץ אילת, Mifrátz Eilát) is a large gulf at the northern tip of the Red Sea, east of the Sinai Peninsula and west of the Arabi ...
as the "Aqaba Railway."
In August 2011, Jordanian government approved the construction of the railway from
Aqaba
Aqaba (, also ; ar, العقبة, al-ʿAqaba, al-ʿAgaba, ) is the only coastal city in Jordan and the largest and most populous city on the Gulf of Aqaba. Situated in southernmost Jordan, Aqaba is the administrative centre of the Aqaba Gove ...
to the Iraqi border (near
Trebil). The Iraqis in the meantime started the construction of the line from the border to their current railhead at
Ramadi
Ramadi ( ar, ٱلرَّمَادِي ''Ar-Ramādī''; also formerly rendered as ''Rumadiyah'' or ''Rumadiya'') is a city in central Iraq, about west of Baghdad and west of Fallujah. It is the capital and largest city of Al Anbar Governorate whi ...
.
Timeline
* 2008- Proposals for international links.
* 2007
China to rebuild Hejaz line* 2006- Various rail proposals.
:* The Israeli business newspaper
Globes
A globe is a spherical model of Earth, of some other celestial body, or of the celestial sphere. Globes serve purposes similar to maps, but unlike maps, they do not distort the surface that they portray except to scale it down. A model globe o ...
reported that in a meeting between the Israeli minister of transport,
Shaul Mofaz
Shaul Mofaz ( he, שאול מופז; 4 November 1948) is a retired Israeli military officer and politician. He joined the Israel Defense Forces in 1966 and served in the Paratroopers Brigade. He fought in the Six-Day War, Yom Kippur War, 1982 L ...
and the Jordanian ambassador in
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...
in November, the transport minister announced that European nations are interested in financing the construction of a
Haifa
Haifa ( he, חֵיפָה ' ; ar, حَيْفَا ') is the third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropoli ...
-
Irbid
Irbid ( ar, إِربِد), known in ancient times as Arabella or Arbela (Άρβηλα in Ancient Greek language, Ancient Greek), is the capital and largest city of the Irbid Governorate. It also has the second largest metropolitan population in ...
-Amman railway.
* 2005-
2005 in rail transport
:* -
Jordan
Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Ri ...
ian Transport Minister
Saoud Nseirat responds to comments made on Monday, December 12, by
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
i Transport Minister
Meir Shitrit. Shitrit had announced his intentions to propose a new standard gauge railway to connect
Haifa
Haifa ( he, חֵיפָה ' ; ar, حَيْفَا ') is the third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropoli ...
, Israel, to
Irbid
Irbid ( ar, إِربِد), known in ancient times as Arabella or Arbela (Άρβηλα in Ancient Greek language, Ancient Greek), is the capital and largest city of the Irbid Governorate. It also has the second largest metropolitan population in ...
, Jordan, passing through
King Hussein Bridge
The Allenby Bridge (English name; he, גשר אלנבי ''Gesher Allenby''), known officially in Jordan as the King Hussein Bridge ( ar, جسر الملك حسين ''Jisr al-Malek Hussein''), and also called Al-Karameh Bridge by Palestinian Arab ...
and
Jenin
Jenin (; ar, ') is a Palestinian city in the northern West Bank. It serves as the administrative center of the Jenin Governorate of the State of Palestine and is a major center for the surrounding towns. In 2007, Jenin had a population of a ...
, a project that could cost as much as $300 million (for the Jordanian portion of the line). Nseirat responded to Shitrit's comments with a denial, stating that there have not been any discussions between the two nations on such a project and no plans for such a connection have been proposed by anyone in the Jordanian government. Shitrit plans to make his formal proposal at a conference for
Mediterranean
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on th ...
transport ministers in
Marrakesh
Marrakesh or Marrakech ( or ; ar, مراكش, murrākuš, ; ber, ⵎⵕⵕⴰⴽⵛ, translit=mṛṛakc}) is the fourth largest city in the Kingdom of Morocco. It is one of the four Imperial cities of Morocco and is the capital of the Marrakes ...
on December 20.
[ArabicNews.com (December 14, 2005),]
Jordan denies reports on a railway project with Israel
". Retrieved December 15, 2005.
** - The Public Transport Regulatory Commission has entered into an agreement with a private sector consortium, following a competitive bidding process, to develop a light rail system between the Jordanian capital
Amman and nearby industrial city of
Zarqa
Zarqa ( ar, الزرقاء) is the capital of Zarqa Governorate in Jordan. Its name means "the blue (city)". It had a population of 635,160 inhabitants in 2015, and is the most populous city in Jordan after Amman.
Geography
Zarqa is located in ...
. This light rail project, to be operational by 2011, will be the first urban rail
public-private partnership (PPP) in the Middle East. The system will be operated using (standard gauge) electrically propelled light rail vehicles on a double track. The total length of the LRS system will be approximately 25 kilometres. The majority of the LRS route, between Al-Mahatta (in
Amman) and
New Zarqa will be constructed within the existing
Hedjaz Railway right-of-way (22.2 kilometres). The Public Transport Regulatory Commission estimates that the new system will carry about 45,000 passengers a day in its first year. Canada's CPCS was the lead advisor to the PTRC in this PPP transaction.
** CPCS is also advising the Government of Jordan in the privatization of the
Aqaba Railway Corporation, running from
Ma'an
Ma'an ( ar, مَعان, Maʿān) is a city in southern Jordan, southwest of the capital Amman. It serves as the capital of the Ma'an Governorate. Its population was approximately 41,055 in 2015. Civilizations with the name of Ma'an have existe ...
to
Aqaba
Aqaba (, also ; ar, العقبة, al-ʿAqaba, al-ʿAgaba, ) is the only coastal city in Jordan and the largest and most populous city on the Gulf of Aqaba. Situated in southernmost Jordan, Aqaba is the administrative centre of the Aqaba Gove ...
. This railway is used to transport phosphate from mines located in Ma'an. The commission plans to modernize the old
narrow gauge
A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and .
Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller struc ...
railway and replace it with new track.
Pipelines
gas 473 km; oil 49 km
Ports and harbors
The port of
Aqaba
Aqaba (, also ; ar, العقبة, al-ʿAqaba, al-ʿAgaba, ) is the only coastal city in Jordan and the largest and most populous city on the Gulf of Aqaba. Situated in southernmost Jordan, Aqaba is the administrative centre of the Aqaba Gove ...
on the
Gulf of Aqaba
The Gulf of Aqaba ( ar, خَلِيجُ ٱلْعَقَبَةِ, Khalīj al-ʿAqabah) or Gulf of Eilat ( he, מפרץ אילת, Mifrátz Eilát) is a large gulf at the northern tip of the Red Sea, east of the Sinai Peninsula and west of the Arabi ...
is the only sea port in Jordan.
Merchant marine
''total:''
7 ships (with a volume of or over) totaling /
''ships by type (1999):''
bulk carrier
A bulk carrier or bulker is a merchant ship specially designed to transport unpackaged bulk cargo — such as grains, coal, ore, steel coils, and cement — in its cargo holds. Since the first specialized bulk carrier was built in 1852, ec ...
2,
cargo ship 2,
container ship
A container ship (also called boxship or spelled containership) is a cargo ship that carries all of its load in truck-size intermodal containers, in a technique called containerization. Container ships are a common means of commercial intermoda ...
1,
livestock carrier
A livestock carrier is a large ship used in the live export of sheep, cattle and goats. They are specially built new or converted from container ships.
Livestock carriers
Seagoing vessels modified or purpose-built for the transportation of live ...
1,
roll-on/roll-off ship 1
The governments of
Jordan
Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Ri ...
,
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Med ...
, and
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
own and operate the
Arab Bridge Maritime company, which is the largest passenger transport company on the
Red Sea
The Red Sea ( ar, البحر الأحمر - بحر القلزم, translit=Modern: al-Baḥr al-ʾAḥmar, Medieval: Baḥr al-Qulzum; or ; Coptic: ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϩⲁϩ ''Phiom Enhah'' or ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϣⲁⲣⲓ ''Phiom ǹšari''; ...
.
Airports
18 as of 2012
Airports - with paved runways
As of 2012, there was a total of 16 airports, the main airports being:
*
Queen Alia International Airport
Queen Alia International Airport ( ar, مطار الملكة علياء الدولي, Maṭār al-Malika ʿAlyāʾ ad-Dawaliyy) is an international airport located in Zizya, 30 kilometers (18 miles) south of Amman, Jordan's capital city, as ...
in
Amman.
*
King Hussein International Airport
Aqaba Airport ❲also known as King Hussein Int'l Airport ❳ ( ar, مطارالملك الحسين الدولي) is an airport located in the vicinity of Industrial City (Aqaba International Industrial Estate – ), northern suburb of Aqaba in ...
in
Aqaba
Aqaba (, also ; ar, العقبة, al-ʿAqaba, al-ʿAgaba, ) is the only coastal city in Jordan and the largest and most populous city on the Gulf of Aqaba. Situated in southernmost Jordan, Aqaba is the administrative centre of the Aqaba Gove ...
*
Amman Civil Airport in Amman
*
Muwaffaq Salti Air Base
Muwaffaq Salti Air Base - Azraq ( ar, قاعدة الشهيد موفق السلطي الجوية - الازرق ) is a Royal Jordanian Air Force air base located in Azraq, Zarqa Governorate.
History
In 1918, during World War I, T.E. Lawrence ( ...
: A military airport in
Azraq
Azraq ( ar, الأزرق meaning "blue") is a small town in Zarqa Governorate in central-eastern Jordan, east of Amman. The population of Azraq was 9,021 in 2004. The Muwaffaq Salti Air Base is located in Azraq.
History
Prehistory
Archae ...
''total (2012):''
16
''over'' :
8
:
5
''under'' :
1
Airports - with unpaved runways
''total (2012):''
2
''under'' :
2
Heliports (2016)
56
Maps
UNHCR Atlas Map - most stations unnamed
See also
*
Arab Mashreq International Railway
*
Jordan
Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Ri ...
*
Red Sea–Dead Sea Access
References
External links
Hejaz RR Map
{{Jordan topics