Tunisia’s north-south bullet train just took its first real step 🇹🇳 🚄

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Tunisia is pushing ahead with the modernization of its rail network, and it wants stronger links with its Maghreb neighbors. The launch of feasibility studies marks a first concrete step toward a corridor built with regional ambitions in mind — and a serious tech upgrade behind it.

Studies to lay the groundwork 🚄

On August 17, Tunisia’s national rail operator, the Société nationale des chemins de fer tunisiens (SNCFT), opened a call for tenders to select the engineering firms that will handle the feasibility and design studies for the future north-south high-speed line. The first section will run from Bizerte to Ben Guerdane, passing through major urban hubs, ports, freight centers, and logistics zones along the way. Eventually, authorities envision extending the line into Algeria and Libya, with the broader goal of building continuous rail connectivity across the Maghreb.

Tech at the core of the overhaul ⚙️

This isn’t just about laying new track. The project is built around a deeper technological overhaul of existing infrastructure. Engineering firms will need to define the technical solutions to boost network capacity, improve service reliability, and better manage passenger and freight flows — likely through more modern signaling and control systems. The push is part of a broader national roadmap that calls for nearly 36 billion Tunisian dinars in investment (roughly $12.3 billion, or an estimated 7,000 billion CFA francs at current exchange rates) by 2040, aimed at upgrading around 2,000 km of track. Beyond speed, it’s Tunisia’s entire rail engineering approach that’s being rethought, with rail set to play a bigger role in logistics and regional development.

A corridor still facing real obstacles 🌍

Financing remains the biggest hurdle for a project this ambitious. On top of that, Libya’s rail network has been largely dormant since 2011, which seriously complicates the prospect of a continuous link reaching the Libyan border. If the corridor does come together, it could reshape how people and goods — agricultural products especially — move across the region, while drawing the Tunisian, Algerian, and Libyan economies closer together around shared infrastructure.

Do you think tech-driven rail modernization could become a real engine for economic integration across the Maghreb? Let us know in the comments.