DOH HIA Train/Automated People Mover Operational 1 November 2016
Selected quotes from the press release:
Hamad International Airport (HIA) announced today that its dual Passenger Trains inside the airport terminal will begin operations from the 1st of November 2016.
The operational commencement was made possible after the Ministry of Transport and Communications provided HIA with an Operational Safety Certificate. The Operational Safety Certificate establishes that HIA has met the railway safety regulation requirements, to the satisfaction of the Ministry, for commencement of passenger service.
The Ministry has worked with HIA over the last few months through the safety certification process to ensure that HIA, the operator of the Passenger Train, achieves compliance with regulations in the State of Qatar, has an effective safety management system and the appropriate competency and capacity to implement safety systems to ensure safe railway operations.
The two Passenger Trains are designed to shuttle between the South and North nodes of the terminal, significantly reducing travel time through the airport for both arriving and departing passengers, which includes transferring passengers.
Passengers departing from HIA can board from the South station, located behind the iconic Lamp Bear, which will take them towards the North station located near concourses D and E. Passengers arriving at HIA can board the North Station which will take them towards the transfers hall and arrivals immigration located near the South station.
Each Passenger Train has 5 carriages, with the design capacity of 38 persons per carriage which allows each train to transport up to 190 passengers at a time. The two passenger trains will be operated simultaneously in a synchronized manner with the train system remaining operational 24 hours a day. Each trip between the two stations takes 90 seconds, with a 44 second waiting time at each station. Approximate walking time for the same distance is 9 minutes.
The press release is available on HIA's website.