History of Casablanca control of Casablanca was not formalised until 1910. It was especially during the years of military governor Hubert Lyautey that Casablanca became Morocco's economic center and Africa's biggest harbour. The famous 1942 film "Casablanca" underlined the city's colonial status at the time—depicting it as the scene of a power struggle between competing European powers, carried out without any reference to the local population, and with the film's vast cosmoplitan cast of characters (American, French, German, Czech and some other nationalities) including not a single Arab. During the 1940s and 1950s, Casablanca was a major centre of anti-French rioting. A terrorist
Casablanca–Rabat expressway speed limit was imposed on this section. Casablanca–Rabat expressway The Casablanca–Rabat expressway, designated A1, was the first expressway to be built in Morocco, with construction starting in the 1970s. It was only completed in 1986 after a 7-year halt. It was originally free of charge, but a toll station was erected at Bouznika in 1993 as part of a new strategy in Moroccan expressway construction. Traffic between Casablanca and Mohammedia west, as well as from Rabat to Aïn Atiq travel free of charge. In December 2012 the operator of the road, ADM widened the road to 2 X 3 lanes.