Road and rail revolution in Oman

thousands of jobs in 260 categories will be created in the 2,135-km long national railway project, a senior official of the Oman Rail said

Muscat:Thousands of jobs are to be created in the railways in Oman, while thousands of kilometres of new roadways are to be laid to transform the Sultanate transport infrastructure.

A top-level official at the Ministry of Transport and Communications yesterday said that as many as 84 projects for building 1,646 kilometres of roads across the country with a combined capital expenditure of OMR2.7 billion are under implementation.

Similarly, thousands of jobs in 260 categories will be created in the 2,135-km long national railway project, a senior official of the Oman Rail said while speaking to Times of Oman.

Salim bin Mohammed Al Nuaimi, undersecretary at the Ministry of Transport and Communications for Transport, said major projects under implementation include Batinah Expressway and Bid Bid-Sur dualisation projects. At a press meet Dr. Ahmed bin Mohammed bin Salim Al Futaisi, Minister of Transport and Communications, said two segments of Adam-Thumrait dualisation project, each 120 km-long, are reaching implementation stage.

"Work on building Adam-Thumrait dualisation will start this year," he said,

"If we include projects that are awarded recently, it will take the total cost to almost OMR3 billion," added the minister, while outlining the ministry's plan for 2015.

Another 25 road projects have reached the tendering stage, which include Khasab road and link road connecting Sultan Qaboos Highway with Batinah Expressway, which will have a length of 220 kms, the minister said.

"It (new roads) requires tendering, finishing all processes, and therefore, the exact number of projects and value depend on how fast we can finish the awarding process," noted Dr Al Futaisi.

Among the jobs available with Oman Rail are those of Public Relations Officer, Vendor Management Specialist, General Manager Strategy, Planning Construction Manager, Rail Security Manager, Quality Assurance Manager, Health & Safety & Environment Manager, Project Manager, Land Acquisition Specialist, Project Administrator, Legal Counsel, Reward & Benefit specialist, Recruitment Officer, Learning and Development Manager, Information Technology Help Desk & Support, Financial Controller, Assistant Accountant, Tendering Support Officer, Quantity Surveyor & Claim Manager, Country Value Specialist, Contract Service Manager, Performance Management Analyst, Business Planning Analyst, Key Account Manager Heavy Industries, Key Account Manager Bulk and General Manager Business Development.

A number of major projects, including implementation of the first segment of Oman Railway (Sohar- Buraimi) and completion of route design for all other (eight) segments of Oman National Railway network, will be completed this year.

Oman Railway Centre of Excellence, which was approved by the company's board to train and conduct applied research in this field, will be also initiated.

During the year, the operation and maintenance strategy will be approved after awarding its tender in the first half of this year.

The strategy focuses on the possible options for operations and maintenance and selecting the best of them.

Road connectivity"Good roads and connectivity between cities are considered as a vital thing needed for a progressing country. So, implementation of 84 road projects is a good sign to see that Oman is progressing. More roads and better connectivity means more business and growth of economy," Anvwar Al Balushi, chairman of Anvwar Asian Investment Group, said.

Ahmed Al Hooti, a member of Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OCCI), opines that the government should consider an integrated plan for transport sector.

"The road projects are very important to complete (transport) infrastructure in the Sultanate," said Al Hooti. "Such projects should be implemented after detailed studies," said Al Hooti.

Tawfiq Al Lawati, a Majlis Al Shura member, agreed with Al Hooti saying that the government should consider an integrated plan for the transport sector. "I feel that the government always stand alone and does not help other projects," said Tawfiq. He added that the government should learn from the past and think for many years in future. "The government should consider the statistics (number) of vehicles," noted Tawfiq.

"The ministry should study the traffic flow before deciding the route of the buses," said Tawfiq.