GCC Railway Agreement to Be Signed on 8 November: One Train Network to Link All Six Gulf States by 2030

The six countries of the Gulf are about to take the biggest step yet towards building a single railway network that links them all. On Sunday, 8 November 2026, transport ministers from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) are set to sign the General Railway Agreement in Manama, Bahrain — the deal that will set the rules for running trains across borders from Kuwait in the north to Oman in the south.

The agreement has been described by Bahrain’s transport minister as the most important deal the Gulf states have reached so far on the railway project. It comes after more than a decade of planning, delays and false starts for a network of about 2,100 kilometres that is meant to carry both passengers and freight. The target is for the full network to be running by December 2030.

For the millions of people who live and work in the Gulf — including a large Pakistani community — it could eventually change how they travel and how goods move around the region. Here is what the agreement is, what the railway will look like, and what still has to happen before the first cross-border train runs.

What happened

Bahrain expects the landmark agreement to be signed at a meeting of GCC transport ministers in Manama on Sunday, 8 November 2026. The news was given by Bahrain’s Minister of Transportation and Telecommunications, Sheikh Abdulla bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, in an exclusive interview with The National, published on 6 November.

Sheikh Abdulla said the agreement was the result of intensive coordination between the six member states and their ministries and authorities. He described it as the most important agreement to be reached at GCC level for the railway project — the deal that speeds the project up and turns years of talk into a shared legal framework.

The signing was also reported by TradeArabia, the Gulf business news service, which said the six states are preparing to sign the General Railway Agreement at the Manama meeting. The story marks a notable advance for one of the region’s largest joint transport projects.

The timing is not an accident. The Gulf states have been pushing the project forward through 2026: in October, Saudi Arabia Railways set a deadline for appointing a design consultant to oversee engineering works on the network, and in early October the UAE and Saudi Arabia signed a preliminary agreement to study a rail link between their two national networks.

What is the GCC railway?

The GCC railway is a plan to build one connected railway network across all six members of the Gulf Cooperation Council: Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain.

In simple words, it is the Gulf’s version of a regional railway. Today, each Gulf country has its own roads, ports and — in some cases — its own national railway. But there is no train that can cross from one Gulf country into another. To travel between Gulf capitals, people fly or drive. Goods move by truck or by ship. The GCC railway is meant to change that by joining the national networks into a single system.

The network is planned to be about 2,100 kilometres long, according to The National. It is designed to carry both passengers and freight:

• Passenger trains would travel at roughly 200 kilometres per hour, making a journey between Gulf cities faster than driving and competitive with flying once airport waiting times are counted.
• Freight trains would run at between 80 and 120 kilometres per hour, carrying containers and goods between ports, industrial zones and markets across the region.

The point of the project goes beyond shorter journeys. According to analysis cited by IndexBox, the railway is intended to create a single land transport corridor that supports trade, tourism and logistics, linking ports, industrial zones and markets across the region. It is also expected to lower the cost of moving freight, give travellers another option besides flying and driving, and encourage investment in transport and warehousing.

The project has been talked about for a very long time. The National notes that it was first proposed more than a decade ago, and the idea in its current form dates back to an agreement in 2009. For years it moved slowly, held back by disagreements over costs, routes and rules. The agreement to be signed in Bahrain is meant to clear one of the biggest remaining obstacles: the shared rules for how the network will actually work.

The route: from Kuwait to Oman

The railway will run from Kuwait in the north, down through Saudi Arabia, and on to Oman in the south. The route, as described in recent reporting by the Middle East business publication MEED, is:

• It starts in Kuwait City, in Kuwait.
• It runs south into Saudi Arabia, reaching the eastern city of Dammam.
• From Dammam, one branch crosses to Bahrain over a planned new causeway, the King Hamad Causeway — a second fixed link between Bahrain and Saudi Arabia alongside the existing King Fahd Causeway.
• From Dammam, the line also continues to Qatar through the Salwa border crossing.
• It then runs through the United Arab Emirates.
• Finally, it reaches Oman, ending in Muscat via the port city of Sohar.

Saudi Arabia has the longest stretch of the network, about 672 kilometres inside the kingdom, linking its existing national railway to Kuwait, Qatar, the UAE and Bahrain. The UAE’s section is about 684 kilometres. The other sections are smaller: Oman about 306 kilometres, Qatar about 283 kilometres, Kuwait about 145 kilometres and Bahrain about 36 kilometres.

One important detail is that the line is planned as a single track for mixed freight and passenger traffic in Saudi Arabia, with passing loops so trains travelling in opposite directions can pass each other. It is not planned as an electrified high-speed line like the Haramain railway between Makkah and Madinah in Saudi Arabia, which runs at much higher speeds. The GCC railway is a workhorse network: steady, shared and built for both people and goods.

No official total cost for the whole network has been published. Outside estimates over the years have run into the hundreds of billions of dollars, which is one reason the project has taken so long to agree. The cost is shared between the six states, with each country paying for the section inside its own borders.

What the agreement actually does

Signing a piece of paper does not lay a single kilometre of track. So why does this agreement matter so much?

Because a cross-border railway needs far more than steel and concrete. It needs shared rules. A train that starts in Kuwait and ends in Oman has to cross five international borders. For that to work smoothly, the six countries need to agree on the same safety standards, the same technical rules, the same way of handling customs and border checks, and the same system for tickets and freight charges.

That is what the General Railway Agreement is for. According to IndexBox, citing analysis of the deal, Bahrain’s minister stressed the need to finish the regulatory and legislative frameworks required to run the network. The agreement is described as a significant regulatory milestone: it sets the legal ground rules so that construction, operation and cross-border services can all follow one shared system.

Bahrain has already been preparing on its own side. MEED reported that Bahrain has introduced legislation to set up a framework for building, operating, maintaining and regulating railway networks, including licensing, safety, cross-border services and passenger and freight tariffs. The other states have been doing similar work on their own national sections.

Work on the ground has also been moving. Saudi Arabia Railways issued a request for proposals in September 2026 to appoint a design management and review consultant for the GCC railway, with a submission deadline of 1 November. In early October, the UAE and Saudi Arabia signed a preliminary agreement to study rail connectivity between their networks, covering technical and economic feasibility studies for a dedicated freight link — and even potential electricity interconnection.

Why it has taken so long

If the idea dates back to 2009 and the target is 2030, why has it taken more than 15 years to reach this point?

There are several reasons, and they are the same reasons that slow down almost every big cross-border project in the world.

First, money. A 2,100-kilometre railway across six countries costs an enormous amount, and the states have had to agree on who pays for what. Each country builds and pays for its own section, but the cross-border links — the causeways, the border stations, the shared systems — need joint funding and joint decisions.

Second, rules. Six countries means six sets of laws, six safety regulators and six customs systems. Agreeing on one shared rulebook takes years of negotiation, and every country wants to protect its own interests.

Third, timing. The Gulf states have each been busy building their own national railways first. The UAE’s Etihad Rail, for example, already runs freight services across a network of about 900 kilometres, and passenger services are being prepared. Saudi Arabia has been expanding its own network, including the Haramain high-speed line and freight lines. It makes sense to connect national networks that actually exist, rather than building a regional line to nowhere.

Fourth, politics. The Gulf has had its own disagreements over the years, including the blockade of Qatar between 2017 and 2021. A shared railway needs a shared level of trust, and that trust has had to be rebuilt.

Why it matters — including for Pakistan

The GCC railway is a Gulf project, but it matters well beyond the Gulf. Pakistan is one of the countries with the most at stake.

Millions of Pakistanis live and work in the six Gulf states, and the money they send home — remittances — is one of the largest sources of foreign income for Pakistan. Today, a Pakistani worker travelling between Gulf countries, or visiting family in another Gulf state, usually has to fly or drive long distances. A connected railway would give them a cheaper, simpler way to travel.

Trade matters too. Pakistan trades heavily with the Gulf: it buys oil and gas from the region and sells food, textiles and other goods to it. Cheaper and faster freight movement inside the Gulf could lower the cost of goods moving through Gulf ports, some of which then travel on to Pakistan. Better logistics in the Gulf can mean better prices for Pakistani exporters and importers.

There is also a jobs angle. A project of this size creates work — in construction, engineering, railway operations and logistics — and Gulf construction and transport projects have long employed large numbers of Pakistani workers.

More broadly, the railway fits the direction the Gulf states are already moving in. Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar and their neighbours are all trying to build economies that depend less on oil and more on trade, tourism, logistics and services. A railway that ties their markets together is a central part of that plan. If it works, the Gulf becomes less a collection of separate national markets and more a single connected region — and that is good news for every country that trades with it, including Pakistan.

What happens next

The signing on Sunday is a beginning, not an ending. Here is what to watch for after the ministers put their names to the agreement:

• The signing itself — whether all six ministers sign in Manama on 8 November as planned, and what they say about the next steps.
• Construction timetables — each country will now have to confirm when building starts on its own section, and the cross-border links such as the King Hamad Causeway between Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.
• Early openings — completed sections between neighbouring countries could open before the full network is ready, so the first cross-border trains might run before December 2030.
• Passenger details — ticket prices, border procedures for passengers, and how the railway will connect with airports and city transport have not been announced yet.
• The December 2030 deadline — the target set by GCC transport ministers is for the full network to be operational by the end of 2030. Big railway projects often slip, so whether the Gulf states hold to that date will be the real test.

For now, the agreement is a sign that after years of delay, the Gulf’s railway has moved from an idea on paper to a project with rules, deadlines and political backing. On Sunday in Manama, the six states will find out whether they can keep it moving.

Frequently asked questions

What is the GCC railway?

It is a planned railway network of about 2,100 kilometres linking all six Gulf Cooperation Council states — Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain — for both passenger and freight trains.

When will the agreement be signed?

The General Railway Agreement is set to be signed at a meeting of GCC transport ministers in Manama, Bahrain, on Sunday, 8 November 2026.

When will the railway be ready?

The target is for the full network to be fully operational by December 2030, with completed cross-border sections possibly opening earlier.

How fast will the trains go?

Passenger trains are planned to run at roughly 200 kilometres per hour, and freight trains at between 80 and 120 kilometres per hour.

How will Bahrain connect to the network?

Bahrain will link to Saudi Arabia through the planned King Hamad Causeway, a second fixed connection between the two countries alongside the existing King Fahd Causeway.

Why has the project taken so long?

The idea dates back to 2009. It was slowed by the huge cost, the need to agree shared rules across six countries, the time taken to build national railways first, and regional political disagreements.

Does the railway affect Pakistan?

Pakistan is not part of the GCC, so the railway does not run through Pakistan. But millions of Pakistanis live and work in the Gulf, and Pakistan trades heavily with the region, so cheaper travel and freight in the Gulf could benefit Pakistani workers, exporters and importers.

Conclusion

The signing of the General Railway Agreement in Bahrain on Sunday is the most concrete step the Gulf states have taken towards a shared railway in more than fifteen years of planning. It does not lay any track by itself, but it gives six countries one set of rules for building and running a 2,100-kilometre network that will carry passengers and freight from Kuwait to Oman.

The real test now is delivery. The Gulf states have set themselves a deadline of December 2030, and they have the money, the engineering and — finally — the shared legal framework to meet it. If they do, travelling and trading across the Gulf will never be the same again.

Sources

• The National, exclusive interview with Bahrain’s Minister of Transportation and Telecommunications, Sheikh Abdulla bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, 6 November 2026
• IndexBox, “GCC General Railway Agreement Signing Set for Bahrain Meeting”, 5 November 2026: https://www.indexbox.io/blog/gcc-states-set-to-sign-general-railway-agreement-in-bahrain-on-november-8/
• TradeArabia, “GCC set to sign landmark 2,117-km railway pact in Bahrain”, 5 November 2026
• MEED, “SAR sets November deadline for GCC rail design review”, 14 October 2026: https://guest.meed.com/sar-sets-november-deadline-for-gcc-rail-design-review/
• The Riyadh Atlas, “GCC Railway Project: Route, Timeline and Latest Updates”, updated 26 August 2026: https://theriyadhatlas.com/gcc-railway-project-gulf-new-rail-network/

This article is for general information and education only. It is not legal or financial advice.