The construction of Alexandria’s Metro project has been approved by the Egyptian House of representatives according to Rania Al-Mashat, Minister of International Cooperation
It is said that the House accepted President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi’s decision No. 122 of 2022, which approved a €250 million loan deal between Egypt and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) for the Alexandria Metro Project
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The House also accepted decision No. 120 of 2022, which authorized exchange of letters between the Egyptian and German governments about a €15 million additional loan for the second phase of the hydropower station rehabilitation project.
The first agreement, according to Al-Mashat, intends to help finance a project to develop an existing railway connecting Alexandria’s city center with the Abu Qir district in the governorate’s north-east and to provide it with electricity so that it may become a high efficiency railway system.
What is included in the construction of Alexandria Metro project
The infrastructure work for the railway line’s development, electrification, and related railway systems, as well as the development of signaling, communication, and central control systems, the new metro line’s railway vehicles, construction supervision, as well as site preparation work are also included in the project.
EBRD’s huge investments in Egypt also received praise from the minister, which currently totals €8.6 billion in 145 projects since its establishment in 2012, with the private sector receiving more than 76% of the funding.
Al-Mashat revealed that the development cooperation portfolio with Germany totaled €1.7 billion in four sectors, with the purpose of fulfilling the Sustainable Development Goals In response to the second agreement.
Reported September 2019
Construction of US $1.5bn Alexandria Metro in Egypt to begin next month
The construction of the US $1.5bn Alexandria metro underground system in Egypt will begin in October this year, according to Abdul Aziz Qansua, the Governor of Alexandria; approximately more than 20 years since the conception of the idea.
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The Alexandria Metro project
The project will be executed by a Chinese company, and according to Abdul Aziz, an important step preceding the signing of the contract, which is the finalization of the project’s designs has already been done and reviewed.
“What remains now is to lay down the foundation stone for this new and most anticipated underground transport system which is projected to ease traffic congestion in the streets of Egypt’s second largest city.” stated the governor.
Upon completion, the Metro will run from Alexandria city’s innermost eastern point at Abu Qir to Borg Al Arab in the west, passing by the city’s most important and populated stations, with a holding capacity of 10,000 to 15,000 commuters an hour.
Currently, Egypt’s metro system is the only one operating within the capital and it transports around 3 million people every single day.
It stands as one of the country’s most used and affordable means of public transportation. It is also one of the oldest train systems in the Middle East and Africa.
Tram system
The city already has an existing tram system which will complement the metro system in the effort to make Alexandria a traffic free urban center. The tram system has running micro-buses and buses as well.
The city is also planning to introduce electric buses which underwent an experimental phase for three months in November 2018. The buses are considered pivotal to the Alexandria Passenger Transportation Authority’s (APTA) vision to make Alexandria a green and eco-friendly city by the year 2030.
Reported November 2021
Alexandria Light Rail Line Modernization Project in Egypt receives funding
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has approved the provision of a sovereign loan of close to US$ 283M to Egypt to finance the implementation of the Alexandria Light Rail Line Modernization Project or rather the project to convert Alexandria Light Rail Line, especially the 22 km long section connecting downtown Alexandria and north-eastern district of Abu Qir, into a high-capacity metro.
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Announced by the multilateral development bank in July 2021, this financial facility, which aims to promote the North African country’s green transition through transport, received approval from the banking institution on November 10, 2021. It represents a tranche of an overall investment of close to US$ 1.81bn co-financed by the European Investment Bank (EIB), the French Development Agency (AFD), and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.
Intended use of the sovereign loan
The sovereign loan, according to EBRD, will be directed to the implementation of infrastructure works to modernize and electrify the railway and implement related systems, including the upgrade of signaling, communication, and central control systems, and the provision of new railway cars.
The planned works also include the construction of an elevated viaduct from Toson to AlZahiria, 13 elevated stations, and 8 underground stations from Abu Qir to Toson and from Kafr Abdou to Misr.
The National Authority for Tunnels (NAT), one of the ministry of transport organizations established for the implementation of underground metro projects in Egypt and performing the relevant economic and technical researches and studies in cooperation with the foreign and local companies, will be responsible for the implementation of the project.
Upon completion, the high-capacity metro line operation will be entrusted to an independent private operator.
Alexandria Light Rail Line Capacity
The Alexandria Light Rail Line Modernization Project is expected to increase public transportation capacity from 2,850 to 60,000 passengers per hour, cut down the travel time from 50 to 25 minutes, and increase operational speed from 25 to 80 km/hour.
Moreover, it will help in reducing fuel consumption, given that it will be powered by clean energy.
