| Cairo Metro مترو أنفاق القاهرة |
|
|---|---|
| Info | |
| Locale | Cairo |
| Transit type | Rapid transit |
| Number of lines | 2 |
| Number of stations | 53 |
| Website | http://cairometro.gov.eg/ |
| Operation | |
| Began operation | 1987 |
| Operator(s) | Egyptian Railway Authority |
| Technical | |
The Cairo Metro (Arabic: مترو أنفاق القاهرة) in Egypt is the first of only two full-fledged metro system in Africa, and the Arab World. The system consists of two operational lines, with construction having begun on a third line in 2006.
The metro is run by the National Authority for Tunnels. The lines use standard gauge (1435 mm). The ticket price is EGP 1.00 for each journey (about GBP 0.12, EUR 0.14, or USD 0.18, average exchange rate for May 2010), regardless of distance. On all Cairo metro trains, the middle two cars (4th and 5th) of each train are reserved for women (the 5th car becomes a mixed use after 21:00). These cars are used as an option for women who do not wish to ride with men in the same car; however, women can still ride other cars freely.
The two lines carry around 700 million passengers a year and on average 2 million per day.[2]
As the biggest and most densely populated city in Africa, and the Arab World, the case for a metro in Cairo was strong. In 1987 that population stood at 10 million residents, not counting the two million or so commuters who came into Cairo every day to work.[3] The capacity of Cairo's public transport infrastructure was around 20,000 passengers/hour, which increased to 60,000 after the construction of the Metro. In 1990 a study was conducted for the future needs of the city and showed there was a need for about 8.4 million journeys by public transport and 2.7 million journeys by other modes, such as taxi and car. The actual public transport capacity is 4.9 million journeys/day, 3.5 million short of the actual requirement. This has led to a 50% increase in the number of taxis on the streets with subsequent increases in traffic congestion in the city.[4]
The idea of a metro was first thought of in the 1930s by the Egyptian engineer Saiyed Abdel Wahed who was working at the Egyptian Railway Authority,[5] however, the idea did not progress. Following the Egyptian Revolution of 1952, there was renewed interest in the idea. In 1954 French experts made a report about the future of the transportation in Egypt. They proposed a metro encompassing two lanes, one 12 km long lane connecting Bab al-Louq and Ismailia and a second 5 km lane connecting Boulaq and Abou al-Ela Castle. They also proposed that there should be one company in charge of all transportation systems.[5]
Later on multiple experts came to Egypt regarding that project: Soviet experts in 1956, Japanese experts in 1960 and French experts in 1962, which concluded the following: The creation of a metro system with multiple lines. The first is a 5 km lane connecting Helwan with El-Marg going under the Kasr el eini street and Ramses Street.[5] The second lane would be from Sayeda Zainab to Shobra going under Downtown Cairo and would be 9.5 km long.[5] The third is from Giza to Abbasiyah and would be 11.5 km long. The fourth is from Al Awqaf to the Castle and is 6.7 km long.[5]
In 1964 British experts advised the creation of a metro line from Bab El Louk to Shubra.[6] In 1966 Japanese experts advised the creation of a lane between Helwan and El Marg and another one going through Mohandessin, Heliopolis and 26 of July street, which would encompass 26 km.[6] Lastly, in 1969, the government approved the need for a study showing the needed capacity for Cairo's transportation system.[6] The Egyptian Ministry of Transport had an international tender for the creation of the study. Eight companies applied and the French company Sufreto won the tender on 20 September 1970.[7] The study was finished in 1973 and included mainly the study of the population development in Cairo and its needs for transportation capacity in 1980,1985 and 1990.[8] It concluded the necessity for three lines in greater Cairo to solve the transportation problem. The first line would use the already available railways (Helwan-Bab El luk and Al Laymoun Bridge- El Marg) and connect them through a metro. It would be in total 43 km long. The second line should be 13.5 km and connect Shubra El-Kheima and Bulak el Dakrur going through Ramses Street and Tahrir Square. The third line would go from El Darasa to Imbaba and would be in total 10 km long.[9]
The priority for the project was the first line which would reduce 30% of the daily transport to and from Cairo and use the already available structures.[9] The detailed study of the construction took 6 years from 1975 to 1981.[9] A tender was made for the construction of the metro and the Egyptian-French company Entra Nevra Arabco won it and had the task of constructing the metro system.[10]
Cairo Metro Line 1 is the first line of the Cairo Metro. Its first stage was opened to the public in 1987 and it was fully completed in 1989 connecting Helwan with El Marg and consisting of 33 stations with a total length of 43 km, of which 4.5 km are underground. The line witnessed few developments since 1989, New El Marg station was added in 1999 to the northern end of the line, bringing its total length to 44.3 km. Helwan University station was built between Wadi Houf and Ain Helwan stations. The line now consists of 35 stations. This line carries trains with 3 Units (9 wagons), which have a time difference of 2.5 minutes and a maximum speed of 100 km/h.[11] The line can carry 60,000 passengers per hour in each direction.[12]
The construction of the project started in 1982 after the French government agreed on giving Egypt the necessary loan. The first Helwan - El Marg line costs 1107 million francs which were converted into EGP and divided into multiple stages.[13] The total cost of the first stage from Helwan to Ramses is 473.9 million EGP divided into the following:
The second stage cost a total of 499.6 million EGP and connected the (Laymoun Bridge - El Marg) railway with the metro.[14] Additional costs were made available as requested by the ministry of transportation:
The Construction of the Helwan - El Marg line was in two stages. The first stage was from Helwan to Sayeda Zenab and included an underground tunnel from Helwan to Ramses Square. First the line from Helwan to Sayeda Zenab, which is 24 km long had the following construction works:
Second the line from Helwan to Ramses Square, which would be a subterranean and is 4.5 km long. It includes five subterranean stations after the Sayeda Zenab station:
The Construction of this line consumed the following resources:
In 1987 the line from Helwan to Ramses Square was finished and opened for the public.[17] It had a total length of 29 km.
The second stage of the Helwan - El Marg line included the construction of a line from Ramses Square to El Marg, which would be 14 km long.[17] The operation of the line was aimed for 1988,[17] but due to some difficulties it started operation in 1989.[11] The second stage included also:
The contract was awarded to a consortium led by Vinci Construction Grand Projects, a French construction company. Vinci Construction, which holds a 28.5% stake in the consortium, was given the civil engineering package of the contract in January 2007. Other parties in the consortium include Arab Contractors (27.5% stake), Bouygues (26%) and local company Orascom Construction Industries that has been awarded 18% of the contract.
Cairo Metro Line 2 is the second line of the Cairo Metro. Cairo's metro network was greatly expanded in the mid-1990s with the building of Line 2 (yellow), from Shoubra El Kheima to Cairo University, with an extension to Giza. It is the first line in history to have a tunnel going under the Nile.[11][18] The tunnel under the Nile is 8.35 m in internal diameter and was constructed using two Herenknecht bentonite slurry shield TBMs, which are 9.43 m in diameter.[11] Extending 21.5 kilometres (13 mi) with 20 stations, it is sometimes called the "Japanese-Built Line". It is mostly in bored tunnel, with two exceptions: a short section at the northern end approaching Shubra El Kheima which is elevated, and a section just south of this by cut-and-cover. The main difference between Lines 1 and 2 is that Line 1 uses an overhead line while Line 2 uses the third-rail system. The construction of the line was finished in October 2000 and was later extended to El Mounib.[11] The communication extension for line 2 was provided by Alcatel in 2005.[19]
Cairo Metro Line 3 (under construction) extends from the northwest of the Greater Cairo at Imbaba to the northeast at Heliopolis and will eventually also serve Cairo International Airport. The line crosses under the two branches of the River Nile, as does Line 2. The total length of the line is approximately 33 kilometres (21 mi) most of which is in bored tunnel and will be implemented in four phases. The project includes a main workshop adjacent to the western terminal of the line and a light repair workshop at the middle of the line at Abbasia.[20]
The implementation of Line No. 3 will start with Attaba to Abbasia section, the first phase, followed by the second phase from Abbasia to Heliopolis, which are the most urgent sections for the transportation needs. The design of phase 1 is taking into consideration the safe crossing of two major underground structures; namely, the line 2 bored tunnel at Attaba and the wastewater spine tunnel north of Attaba. It is also planned that some of the underground stations will be extensively used as commercial centres. These stations will be constructed by the cut-and-cover method and the rolling stock will be fed by power through a third rail. Orascom Construction Industries won the tender for 1 billion EGP for the construction of the first phase of the project.[21] The line will have a contactless fare collection system and integrated supervision and communication system supplied by the Thales Group.[22] France provided a 280 million dollar loan for the second phase of the project to french companies involved in the project.[23]
Phase 1 is currently underconstruction with a total length of 4.3 kilometres starts from Attaba to Abbasiyya in which five stations are being built and dug as of June 2011. They are Attaba, Bab El-sha'eria, El Geish, Abdo Basha and Al Abbasiyya.[24] El Geish street has been closed since May 2008 for underground works. Works underground at the Attaba station have been running since 2007 to divert water pipes, electricity grid and sewage network. Work in that station which also serves Line 2 will begin in early 2009. Phase 1 has a completion and operational date set at October 2011 but is pushed back to January 2012 due to the recently uprising events and from October 2011 till January 2012 operational tests will be conducted.[25]
Phase 2 construction work on Line 3 has begun in mid-2009 and will run from Abbassiya Station till Al Ahram Station in Heliopolis, with four stations to be constructed, Cairo Fairground, The Stadium, Koleyet El-Banat, and Al-Ahram. This phase has a completion date set at October 2013.[26]
Phase 3 is set to begin in 2011 and it is the western branch of Line 3, this phase will connect Attaba Station with the already existing Gamal Abdel Nasser Station through Emad El-Din Street with a new station built in between, it will then continue on its way onto Maspero (New Station) and run under both branches of the Nile passing through Zamalek island and ending at Sphinx Square Station. Completion date is set at October 2015.
Phase 4 is scheduled to begin in 2013 will be starting from Sphinx Square Station it will split into two branches with on heading towards Imbaba and the other toward Mohandessin with two stations on the Imbama branch (Kit Kat Station and Sudan Street Station) and three stations on the Mohandessin branch (Mustafa Mahmoud Station, Shehab Street Station and Lebanon Square Station). This phase is set for a completion date of October 2017.
Phase 5 which is the final phase in Line 3 has a starting date set at 2015 with a plan for it to continue where it originally left off on the Eastern side of the line completing its path toward Cairo International Airport, running through Heliopolis Square and Ain Shams district, with seven stations to be constructed.
Line 3 is expected to be fully operational by October 2019.
Cairo Metro Line 4 (Construction to begin early 2011) is planned to run from Haram District reaching the New Cairo district literally connecting Greater Cairo from West to East.
Phase 1 of the project will run from El-Malek El-Saleh Station (Interchange with Line 1) all the way to the October-Oasis Highway Station with a total length of 17 km, passing through Giza Railways Station (Interchange with Line 2); the original plan for phase 1 was for it to start from EL-Malek El-Saleh Station and end at the Grand Egyptian Museum Station with a total length of 10 km but the Ministry of Roads & Transportation decided to extend the Line in their efforts to further connect the Governorate of 6 October to the Greater Cairo Area; phase 1 also includes the plan to connect the end of Line 4 to the suburbs of 6 October mainly through executing The October 6th Tram system (The O6T) which will be by using a Tram-train system supplied with the Alstom Regio-Citadis trams.
As of September 2009, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is currently finalizing the feasibility study of the line, with construction expected to begin early 2011. Phase 1 is likely to be operational right after the completion of the 3rd phase in Line 3 by October 2016.
Phase 2 construction of Line 4 is set to begin in 2014 starting from El-Malek El-Saleh Station passing through Magra El-Oyoun street and Salah El-Din Citadel in Salah Salem street and ending at the 6th District Station (beginning of Nasr City district) with a completion date set at October 2018.
Phase 3 construction of Line 4 is set to begin in 2015 starting from the 6th District Station and ending at Makram Ebeid Station running through Mustafa El-Nahas street in bored tunnels under the existing old tram system, taking it as a guide and ultimately deconstructing the old railway and paving the path it occupied increasing the street by two lanes in each direction which is critically needed to lighten the traffic congestion in the area. This phase has a completion date set at October 2019.
Phase 4 which is also the final phase of construction work in Line 4 has a starting date set in 2017 where it will start from Makram Ebeid Station with bored tunnels running through Doctor Hassan El-Sherif street and all the way under Ahmed El-Zomor street reaching the end of the line and making it complete at the Mubarak Police Academy Station.
Line 4 is expected to be fully operational by October 2020.
This project has been proposed by private investors and awaiting approval from the government with a plan to connect Line 3 with Line 4 through a route which is mostly parallel to the Ring Road's eastern arc, therefore covering New Cairo from north to south starting at the Cairo International Airport and ending at the beginning of the Cairo-Ain Sokhna Highway, where the government is currently planning to build a major bus station to serve those traveling to the eastern part of the country.
The project has an estimated cost of $750 million and a completion date set at 2020.
Proposed stations:
A transportation study of the Greater Cairo region was completed in 1999. It recommended the implementation of a six line system consisting of lines 1 and 2 (existing), Line 3 (under construction as of 2010); and lines 4, 5 and 6. The completed Metro Network would be capable of serving most of the densely populated areas in the Greater Cairo region, which was much in need of a comprehensive mass transit system. The plans include interchange stations between the six metro lines and would also provides interchange facilities with existing main railway stations, the airport, and bus stations.
The six planned metro lines aim to meet the transportation demands of the Greater Cairo area up to the year 2022. However, the actual construction and implementation schedule will be restricted by available funding, and it is likely that the timetable will slip.
Line 5 would be half-circular line connecting lines 1, 2, 3 and 4, running from Nasr City to Port Said Street and Shubra El Kheima. It would have a length of 20 kilometres (12 mi), entirely within bored tunnels.
Line 6 would stretch from Shubra in the north until the Maadi and Helwan districts in the south. It would run from Ataba Station (Interchange with both Line 2 and Line 3) through El Kalaa street in bored tunnels to Salah Eldin Citadel Station (Interchange with Line 4) and moving on from there to both districts via bored tunnels using the existing route El-Mahager Railway as a guide through both Maadi and Helwan. This Line has a length of 19 kilometres (12 mi),
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