Senegal extended Dakar's Train Express Régional by 19 km to Blaise Diagne International Airport on September 28, completing a 55 km standard gauge route just ahead of the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games.

The inauguration was attended by Minister of Land Transport & Air Transport Serigne Abdoul Ahad Ndiaye, Minister of Infrastructure Déthié Fall and Minister of Employment Idrissa Samb.

The second phase adds a double-track, 160 km/h alignment electrified at 25 kV 50 Hz and equipped with ETCS Level 2 and GSM-R. The extension links Dakar's city-centre rail spine directly to the country's main international airport.

How is the existing network performing?

SETER, the SNCF subsidiary that operates the line, reports the TER has carried nearly 100 million passengers since the 36 km first phase opened between Dakar and Diamniadio on December 27, 2021. The service runs up to 196 trains per day with a punctuality rate of 98%.

Those figures come from the operator itself; they position the airport extension as the scaling of a network already carrying heavy commuter demand rather than a standalone airport rail link.

Who built Phase 2, and at what cost?

The principal infrastructure contract, worth CFAFr108.4bn, went to a consortium of Eiffage Génie Civil, Eiffage Rail, Turkey's Yapi Merkezi and Senegalese contractor CSE in May 2023.

The airport station, connected to the terminal by a 200 m pedestrian walkway, was built by Turkey's Summa under a separate CFAFr8bn contract.

The railway systems package covering signalling, ETCS, GSM-R and electrification was awarded for CFAFr76.3bn to INEO SCLE Ferroviaire and GTS France in September 2023. Following corporate changes and the evolution of the consortium, the works were delivered by the Equans/Hitachi Rail M2 group.

Phase 2 costs rose substantially during implementation. The original estimate stood at about CFAFr208bn. Public works agency APIX puts the final cost at around CFAFr276bn, while the government cited more than CFAFr300bn at the inauguration — a gap of roughly CFAFr25bn between the official accounts.

What is the fleet?

CAF received a contract in 2023 to supply seven additional four-car Coradia Polyvalent electro-diesel trainsets for Phase 2, expanding the fleet to 22 sets. The trains were built at Reichshoffen, with Alstom supplying major equipment.

The electro-diesel configuration gives the operator flexibility where full electrification is not yet in place on the extended route.

Who financed the project?

Funding came from several international institutions and bilateral sources:

• Islamic Development Bank: €100m initially, plus €40.25m in supplementary financing and CFAFr8bn for the airport station
• African Development Bank: US$74m
• Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa: US$50m
• West African development bank BOAD: CFAFr35bn
• France: a €150m package agreed subsequently for project completion

What comes next?

With the airport link now open months before the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games, SETER faces the task of absorbing expected visitor traffic on a network already running nearly 200 trains a day, while the government's cost accounting for Phase 2 — CFAFr276bn against CFAFr300bn-plus — remains to be reconciled.