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Egypt has begun operating the first phase of the driverless East Nile Monorail as part of its plan to expand its low-carbon mass transit system to more than 100 kilometres.
The first phase of the project includes 16 stations, connecting Al-Moshir Tantawi Station in New Cairo to Justice City Station in the New Administrative Capital, the ministry said in a statement.
The East Nile Monorail service, which started on May 6, extends 56.5 km from Nasr City in eastern Cairo to the New Administrative Capital. It will include 22 stations on completion.
Transport Minister Kamel Al-Wazir has called the service a step towards “faster, safer, and more environmentally friendly public transportation”.
The monorail system is a true game-changer not only for Egypt but for the wider African continent, Martin Vaujour, President for Africa, Middle East and Central Asia at Alstom, said in a statement.
Cairo is home to 25 million people, one of Africa’s largest and fastest-growing megacities.
The line has a capacity of up to 45,000 passengers per hour per direction and is designed to ease urban congestion and respond to the city’s rapid expansion. It integrates advanced, driverless technology to ensure high levels of safety, reliability and operational efficiency.
The monorail vehicles were manufactured at Alstom’s production site in Derby, UK.
In August 2019, an Alstom-led consortium comprising Orascom Construction and Arab Contractors signed a €2.7 billion ($3.2 billion) contract to design, construct, operate and maintain the two lines.
The project includes a 57 km line connecting the New Administrative City with East of Nile and a second 42 km line linking West of Nile with Giza with 13 stations.
The Alstom-led consortium will also provide 30 years of operation and maintenance (O&M) services for both lines.
The monorail is expected to carry up to 600,000 passengers daily once both the East and West Nile lines are complete, spanning 35 stations.
(Writing by P Deol; Editing by Anoop Menon)
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