Riyadh Subway

Riyadh is getting a subway. The project is moving forward with the three largest construction contracts assigned yesterday. Media reports describe the project as a political move, a way to make workers’ lives better to reduce the risk of unrest. But it us more than that. It  represents a new level of commitment on the government’s part. The decision to build urban rail service says that Saudi Arabia and Riyadh are not an accident of the oil boom, to fade away as the oil dries up, but will live on with a new purpose in the post-oil era.