Saudi Arabia’s cabinet last month (February) approved an agreement with Qatar to establish a 785-km high-speed railway linking both capitals – Riyadh and Doha – thus paving the way for one of the Gulf’s most ambitious cross-border transport projects.

The decision was taken during a Cabinet session chaired by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud in Riyadh.

The agreement was originally signed in December 2025 during a meeting of Saudi-Qatar Coordination Council, as part of broader economic co-operation between the two.

The proposed railway would connect the Saudi and Qatari capitals via a direct corridor running through eastern Saudi Arabia, with intermediate stations expected in Al Hofuf and Dammam. The line would link King Salman International Airport with Hamad International Airport.

Trains are planned to operate at speeds exceeding 300 km per hour, potentially cutting travel time between the two cities to a few hours. Construction is expected to take around six years, with completion targeted in the early 2030s.

Once operational, the line is projected to carry more than 10 million passengers annually and generate over 30,000 jobs across the two countries.