Casablanca Expands Public Transit: 700 New Buses to Improve Urban Mobility by Year-End

In February, a new batch of latest generation buses was put into circulation in Casablanca with the deployment of 450 new vehicles by the company Alsa Al-Baida, in accordance with the delegated management contract on a network currently with 57 lines, with 10 new ones. This extension is mainly aimed at relieving users in several districts of the provinces of Nouaceur, Mediouna, the prefecture of Mohammedia and others.

This first batch is part of the first part of the extension of the bus network. There will then be a second deployment of 250 vehicles, towards the end of the year, said Mehdi Safwane in an interview with MAP. For the improvement of urban transport in Casablanca, "we are working to bring the number of buses to 700 by the end of this year, in addition to the rehabilitation of commercial agencies and the provision of a series of digital services, including a website and a smartphone application," he specified.

12 meters long with 33 seats, respecting the environment and equipped with cameras, GPS, WIFI and air conditioning, the buses are also accessible to people with reduced mobility. These vehicles required an investment of 1.4 billion DH, mainly financed by the State via the FART, the municipality of Casablanca, the Casablanca-Settat region, the Al Baida Inter-Municipal Cooperation Establishment and Alsa Al Baida, the delegatee of urban transport in the metropolis.

It should be noted that, with regard to the cases of vandalism perpetrated following the commissioning of the buses in February, the perpetrators were apprehended and sentenced to imprisonment with fines and compensation, under the laws in force in the kingdom.