Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi inaugurated Sunday Adly Mansour interchange station, the largest station in the Middle East.
President Sisi also opened an electric train project on Al Salam/10th of Ramadan /Administrative Capital.
Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouli, Defense and Military Production Minister and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces General Mohamed Zaki along with a host of ministers and senior state officials accompanied President Sisi during the inauguration.
Following the inauguration, President Sisi listened to a detailed explanation from Transport Minister Kamel el Wazir on Adly Mansour interchange station, the largest station in the Middle East.
Wazir congratulated President Sisi and the Egyptian people on the occasion of June 30 Revolution and the commemoration of July 3; the decision day which marks the start of a new era in Egypt as the then president of the Supreme Constitutional Court Adly Masnour was ordered to take over presidency until early elections were held.
The minister of transport welcomed President Sisi at Adly Mansour interchange station which was established with a new vision, being a part of the New Republic that came out to light in the wake of June 30 Revolution that ushered in a period of new hope.
The station was set up within the framework of a plan endorsed by President Sisi on overhauling the transport sector, Wazir said.
The plan mainly incorporated turning public transport means in Greater Cairo into echo friendly electro green transportation means as applied in Adly Mansour interchange station as the station includes seven various means of transport, he added.
Transport Minister Kamel Wazir said the ministry examined central stations worldwide with the largest one was in France with four transportation means.
He said the Adly Mansour interchange station includes seven transportation means; four of them electric.
It includes the Cairo-Suez railway line, the third line of the underground metro, the light electric train – which will be opened today, alongside the Super Jet bus station, electric bus, bus rapid transit (BRT), he said.
President Sisi inspected earlier in the day Adly Mansour interchange station, the largest station in the Middle East, as well as the electric train (Al Salam/10th of Ramadan /Administrative Capital).
During the inspection tour, Sisi was accompanied by Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouli, Defense and Military Production Minister and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces General Mohamed Zaki along with a host of ministers and senior state officials.
Kamel underlined that the human factor is the most important in this mechanism in line with directives of the political leadership.
President Sisi listened to a detailed explanation from Transport Minister Kamel el Wazir about the train carriages.
The minister further said the train carriages, which provide a higher level of railway security, are extremely fancy and comfortable.
Afterwards, President Sisi inspected the train carriages and also listened to an explanation from the transport minister about the carriage’s facilities.
Each carriage is equipped with a Wi-Fi service, along with screens, offering passengers an even greater choice of content on board, the transport minister told President Sisi.
There are also seven surveillance cameras in each train carriage, added the minister.
Inside the trains, seats will be allocated to people with special needs along with a telephone that can be used in case of emergency, he went on to explain.
President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, Minister of Transport Kamel el Wazir and a number of ministers toured Adly Mansour interchange station.
Wazir said the 3rd line starts from Adly Mansour station encompassing Rod El Farag Axis, to the north and Cairo University to the south, with a total length of 41-42 km including 34 stations to commute 1.5 million passengers.
He added that the 1st phase of the 3rd line started from (Ataba to Abbasyia) and the 3rd phase 3A extending 17 km, including 15 stations finalized Sunday, from Ataba to Kit Kat; a transverse artery covering an important trade and an overcrowded residential area.
We are ready to start the experimental operation of Safaa Hegazy metro station on the third line, the minister said.
Head of the Central Department for Tunnels Projects at Egypt’s National Authority for Tunnels (NAT) Dr. Tarek Hamed Gowaily started the experimental operation of the 3rd phase of the third line.
Transport Minister Kamel Wazir said the three lines are 20 kilometers long.
He noted that Egyptian companies are working on the 47-long fourth line in collaboration with a Japanese consultation office and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
As for the fifth line, the minister said “After President Sisi’s directives, we operated a bus rapid transit (BRT) at 13 kilometer long after adding Hadayek October and Haram districts. So, we have the BRT on the ring road instead of the fifth line. ”
He added that the sixth line – which will extend from Khosos district to New Maadi and Tora – is in the designing station, hailing the president’s inauguration of the LRT which starts from Adly Mansour station to Badr city.
He added that Egypt is the sole country in Africa and the Middle East to have electric mass transportation lines at 500 kilometer long and they are all eco-friendly.
President Sisi also listened to a detailed explanation from Head of the Super Jet Company Sabri Ayoub about the SuperJet bus stop at Adly Mansour station.
The station, which is built on a total area of 1.5 feddans, is equipped with all needed services, he added.
The station also includes a parking that can cope up to 24 buses, including 4 electric buses, which can accommodate up to 5,000 passengers, he further said.
All the electric buses in the station are fully produced by Egyptian companies, with a total of 60% of the buses were made up of local components, he added.
A documentary was displayed on the “Egyptian railways” which is one of the oldest railways in Africa and the Middle East and the second around the world after the British ones.
The documentary made clear that the first railway line was established in Egypt between Cairo and Alexandria.
It also showed that the Ministry of Transport exerted efforts to rehabilitate human elements and hone their skills via establishing the Higher Institute for Transport Technology to graduate new cadres that are capable of being up to the development in this field.
The documentary also reviewed the accomplishments done in the railways and the new trains that came into service in addition to the new services that will be introduced to the citizens at the highest level.
Transport Minister Kamel Wazir said the LRT line is about 103 kilometer long with 19 stations.
The train can transit 30 million commuters daily, he said, noting that the stage which the president opened on Sunday includes 12 stations – from Adly Mansour, Badr city, culture and arts city in the New Administrative Capital to New Obour city.
He said about 20 Egyptian companies worked on this stage alongside about 15 Chinese companies for supplying trains and systems.
The project is meant to serve new cities, including Obour, Shorouk, Badr, Mustakbal, 10th of Ramadan, and the New Administrative Capital.
The LRT is linked to the third line of the metro in the Adly Mansour station and the monorail in the station of culture and arts city in the New Administrative Capital, he said.
He noted that the Egyptian companies that contributed to establishing the 19 LRT stations include Arab Contractors Company, Orascom, Petroject, Concorde and Hassan Allam Sons.
While briefing President Sisi on the newly-inaugurated station, Transport Minister Kamel el Wazir said that Badr station connects between the New Administrative Capital and the 10th of Ramadan city.
The station also exchanges services between the light electric train and the diesel-operated train, added the minister.
The last station of the first phase is the City of Arts and Culture, he said, adding that the station is ready for operation.
The passengers can commute as of today from Adly Mansour station to the New Administrative Capital and vice versa, he went on to say.
Transport Minister Kamel el Wazir said the train tracks were secured by 140-kilometer-long barbed wire fencing on both directions.
A workshop, covering an area of 77 feddans and comprising 26 buildings, was set up by two Egyptian companies to carry out all maintenance works.
He said each train carriage can accommodate 300 passengers, with a total capacity of 1,300 passengers.
All carriages are fully secured and include seats for people with special needs, the minister said.
He said 100 Egyptian train drivers were trained as a first stage. Contracts were made with Egyptian and French companies to preserve this important utility, he said, adding that the cabin is equipped with two surveillance cameras to monitor the route and the behaviors of the driver.
Then, President Sisi took the light electric train from Adli Mansour station till Badr station, giving the green light to its operation.
At the end of the ride, President Sisi took a photo op with accompanying statesmen.
