Saudi Binladin Group

Project: Jamarat Bridge & Surrounding Area

Category: Construction Methodology


Project Summary

Introduction

For more than 1,400 years the stoning of the three Jamarat in Muna Valley near Makkah, has been one of the main rituals of Hajj (Pilgrimage). The stoning of Jamarat by pilgrims is repeated daily, in part or in whole, over a 4-day period.

At the beginning, the Jamarat site was marked by three simple monuments on the ground. This allowed the small number of pilgrims to perform the stoning with ease and safety. However, the number of pilgrims started to increase reaching more than three millions in recent years. This large number, mixed with vehicular traffic, resulted in unbearable congestion and increasing reported accidents and casualties. The one-level bridge, completed in 1975, provided needed relief for a maximum of two million pilgrims but proved over the years to be inadequate.



As a part of the Kingdom’s uncompromising commitment to serve the pilgrims, the last few decades witnessed intensive research and full consideration of all feasible designs leading to awarding Saudi Binladin Group the design and construction of the new Jamarat Bridge and Surrounding Area.

Geometrics

  • Overall Length (m) 550
  • Maximum Width (m) 100
  • Number of Levels 6
  • Maximum Clear Span (m) 97

  • Floor Height (m) 12

  • Ramps
    Number - 19
    Total Length (m) - 7,698
    Width (m) - 24-42
    Total Area (m²) - 217,417

  • Souk Al-Arab Tunnel
    Length (m) - 1,850
    Width (m) - 34

  • King Faisal Tunnel
    Length (m) - 2,250
    Width (m) - 16

  • Escalator Buildings:
    Number of Building - 11
    Number of Escalators - 308

  • Service Buildings & Helipads:
    Number of Service Buildings - 6
    Number of Helipads - 2

  • Work Quantities
    Rock Cut (m³) - 9.04 Million
    Shotcreting &Rock Anchoring (m²) - 180,000
    Rock Injection (m³) - 5,000
    Backfilling (m³) - 825,000
    Cast-in-Place Concrete (m³) - 1.17 Million
    Precast Concrete (m³) - 1.55 Million
    Reinforcement Steel (ton) - 477,400
    (for Precast & Cast-in-situ)
    Post-Tensioning (ton) - 20,000
    Precast Post-Tensioned Concrete Segments (no.) - 5,028
    Precast Pre-Stressed Concrete Beams (no.) - 4,214
    (up to 38 meter long)
    Concrete Paving Tiles (m²) - 590,000
    Asphalt Work (m³) - 160,000
    Chilled Water Network (m) - 21,000
    Waste Water Network (m) - 14,000
    Water Supply Network (m) - 26,000

PROJECT MANAGEMENT

The project was a design-build undertaking managed by a fully-dedicated Executive High Committee and Workforce of the Builder. The Project was supervised by the Ministry of Municipalities and Rural Affairs.

RESEARCH MANAGEMENT

Site-specific research has been conducted over more than four decades. It included review of past studies on pedestrian flow and crowd dynamics as well as actual data collection and analysis.

In recent years, the most advanced dynamic pedestrian flow and stoning simulation models were used.