The Minister of Transport made an important inspection tour of the first line of the high-speed electric train network project. 22/04/2025 | 09:38 AM
As part of implementing the directives of His Excellency President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi to expand the establishment of a sustainable, environmentally friendly green mass transit network, and as part of monitoring the implementation of the Sokhna/Alexandria Logistics Corridor, which consists of (Sokhna Port - Line 1 of the high-speed electric train network - Dry Port in 10th of Ramadan City - The "Roubiki/10th of Ramadan/Belbeis" railway line - Alexandria Grand Port),
Lieutenant General Kamel El-Wazir, Deputy Prime Minister for Industrial Development and Minister of Industry and Transport, conducted an important inspection tour of the project for Line 1 of the high-speed electric train network (Sokhna/El Alamein/Matrouh), covering the distance from Mohamed Naguib Station to October Station.
At the beginning of his extensive tour, the Minister, accompanied by Major General Maged Abdel Hamid, Deputy Minister of Transport for Land Transport; Major General Dr. Tarek Goueili, Chairman of the National Authority for Tunnels; Major General Tarek Abdel Gawad, Chairman of the General Authority for Roads and Bridges; Major General Sherif Lail, Assistant Minister of Transport and project consultant; and heads of the implementing companies, inspected the final finishing touches of Mohamed Naguib Station, as well as the platforms and ticket halls serving the Katameya and New Cairo areas. and the new urban areas south of the Ain Sokhna Road. The minister also inspected the station's connection to the Middle Ring Road and Mohamed Naguib Axis, as well as the measures implemented by the General Authority for Roads and Bridges to facilitate the station's connection to the adjacent main roads to facilitate traffic flow in and out. He then inspected the Cairo station in the Helwan area, which serves Helwan, 15th of May City, and all areas south of Cairo. He also inspected the final finishing touches at the Giza interchange station with the Cairo-Aswan railway line, as well as the final finishing touches at the October Gardens station, which serves as an interchange station between the first and second lines of the high-speed train network. He also inspected the October station, which serves as an interchange station for passenger transport services with the West Nile Monorail. The minister reviewed the progress of the station's finishing touches, as well as the progress of the remaining stations and the plan for optimal administrative and investment utilization of all spaces within them. He directed that all work be carried out in accordance with the latest international standards. During his tour, the Deputy Prime Minister for Industrial Development and Minister of Industry and Transport also inspected the main maintenance and overhaul workshop for the mobile units operating on the first and second lines, covering an area of 578 acres. The workshop includes 39 buildings (21 buildings currently under construction + 18 reserve spaces for future expansion), including a major overhaul workshop building, inspection and sorting workshops, train waiting areas, and more. The Minister followed up on the progress rates in implementing a number of industrial works in this distance, such as the bridges (the Autostrad - South Helwan on the Nile from the Tebbin Road (extension of the Nile Corniche) to the Cairo / Aswan Agricultural Road - SUMED). He also reviewed the report on the number of bridges that have been completed and directed the intensification of work on the bridges being constructed and implemented according to high quality standards for speedy completion. He also reviewed the track sectors that were handed over to the (Siemens / Orascom / Arab Contractors) alliance to implement basalt paving works and install rails and electric catenary poles, after which the electromechanical works will be implemented. He also reviewed the rate of train supply, as the first "Desiro" train, which was manufactured in Siemens factories in Germany, arrived in Egypt several months ago. The manufacturing of 14 other regional trains (Desiro) has been completed, out of a total of 34 regional trains (Desiro) allocated for the line. The manufacturing of 5 express trains (Velaro) has been fully completed, out of a total of 15 express trains allocated for the line. The first Velaro train is scheduled to arrive in Egypt next August, in addition to the completion of the manufacturing of locomotives. Complete with 14 freight trucks.
During his tour, the Minister met with a number of project workers, praising the significant role played by Egyptian workers in implementing all of Egypt's megaprojects across various sectors, including transportation projects. He added that the implementation of the high-speed electric train network embodies A great epic is being implemented in Egypt, linking all parts of the country together, and that with the implementation of the first line of the network, the Red Sea and the Mediterranean will be linked by land, to be like a new Suez Canal on rails. He also explained that this network will cover all parts of the country, in addition to being development arteries, it will serve new and existing urban and industrial areas, such as the industrial areas in (Helwan, 15th of May, Borg El Arab, 6th of October, New Minya, New Assiut, etc.), as well as serving tourist areas of all kinds, such as (Giza, Sohag, Luxor, Aswan, Abu Simbel, the Red Sea, etc.), as well as serving new agricultural areas, whether in the New Delta, Mostaqbal Misr, Janat Misr, West Minya, Toshka, and East Oweinat. It will also contribute to creating logistical hubs linking the Red Sea and the Mediterranean, and the north and south of the country, linking industrial areas (production areas) to seaports (export centers), as well as linking modern agricultural development areas (New Delta, West Minya, Toshka, Mostaqbal Misr, etc.) to consumption areas and export ports. The three lines of the high-speed electric train network will also provide thousands of direct and indirect job opportunities. It's worth noting that the high-speed train network consists of three lines with a total length of 2,000 km, 60 stations, two main workshops, and five maintenance points. The network's fleet includes 41 high-speed trains, 94 regional trains, and 41 freight locomotives. The first line (Sokhna-El Alamein-Matrouh) is 660 km long and includes: