Ex post evaluation tramway Rabat Salé and Casablanca - Morocco - AFD

Évaluation ex post de la phase 1 du tramway de Rabat-Salé et de la ligne 1 du tramway de Casablanca AFD - STRS - Casa Transport réalisé par le groupement Quadrant Conseil-SYSTRA-BJ Group

AFD is a long-standing financier of Moroccan tramways. On the strength of this fruitful partnership, AFD associated with Casa Transports and STRS, the two tramway project managers of Casablanca and Rabat Salé, piloted an in-depth ex post evaluation of phase 1 of the Rabat-Salé tramway and the Casablanca tram line 1.

9 and 8 years after commissioning, we now have the necessary hindsight. The purpose of this evaluation was to better analyze, qualify and quantify the impacts of these two exemplary projects. The goal was also to better understand the mechanisms at work. It consisted of a holistic approach to the tram system not only on mobility but also on the associated dynamics: institutional, social, urban, economic and environmental.

More specifically the objectives were:

For Moroccan institutions:

• To assess the socio-economic impacts of trams with regard to their investment costs (climate, opening up, gender, etc.), develop and qualify the argument for the continuation of the Moroccan dynamic in favor of surface transport on site own
• Identify areas for improvement for current or future projects,
• To capitalize on the experience of the tramway so that it can also be used by other Moroccan local authorities and actors in cities in the broad sense.

For AFD:
Develop an in-depth analysis of the sustainable development impacts of a "French-style" tram system in the context of an emerging country to enrich the instruction of future projects,
Feed academic research on mobility issues in developing and emerging countries, especially around the Mediterranean,
Promote the Moroccan experience and thus generate new projects in similar contexts.
The evaluation questions listed in the terms of reference were thus broken down into 5 sections:

• Mobility, accessibility and organization of trips
• Environment and climate component
• Social component
• Governance / institutional component
• Urban planning component

Here you will find:

• Executuive summary of the evaluation

If you have any questions or would like more information, do not hesitate to contact me Antoine Chèvre, AFD transport project team manager in charge of the Morocco portfolio - chevrea@afd.fr.

The choice of the sponsors AFD, STRS and CasaT was also to ask for a leader of the group specializing in the evaluation of public policies (Quadrant Conseil) associated with a transport study office (SYSTRA). Do not hesitate to contact 'Thomas Delahais tdelahais@quadrant-conseil.fr on the ex post evaluation methodology dimension.