CAIRO: Minister of Transport celebrated Tuesday the installation of 13 railway tractors, in what he called a first step towards restoring Egypt's railway system. Minister Mohamed Mansour said during the inaugural ceremony held at Ramses Station that 88 tractors would be renovated by year-end and 10 new ones would be up and running next November. The ministry will earmark investments of LE 2.5 billion over the next three years towards face-lifting the country's railway tractors and passenger vehicles, the minister said on Monday. "Out of this LE 2.5 billion, LE 925 million are to renovate passenger vehicles and LE 1.6 billion to revamp railway tractors, Mansour explained. "Currently, around 28 passenger vehicles get refurbished every month, which add up to five trains . in preparation for disposal of ageing passenger vehicles with wooden seats, he added. A series of fatal rail accidents took place in recent years, claiming lives of hundreds of Egyptians, which sparked public dismay over the government's handling of railway safety. According to the ministry, Egypt's railway fleet comprises of 3,500 vehicles, majority of which are obsolete. Within the last two years, 700 vehicles were restored. The ministry expects full renovation of 70 vehicles per month in the next two years. The Railway Authority will also supervise purchase of 700 new vehicles over the same period. "The economy grew 7.1 percent last year, and we need efficient infrastructure and transport systems to sustain that, Mansour said. He recently cited investments of at least LE 90 billion over the next five years through public-private partnerships in Egypt's transport infrastructure in order to meet demand from rapid economic growth. He added that investment in transportation for the current fiscal year ending in June would reach LE 5 billion, a six-fold increase from the previous year. The ministry plans to auction off early next year two new rail lines. The first will run across the Alexandria-Borg Al-Arab Road and the second across the Cairo-Sixth of October City Road. Also, up for grabs next year are bids to re-furbish Egypt's ailing rail stations. The minister revealed this month plans to sell rail stations to private investors to put them in par with international stations. "This presents a fantastic opportunity [for private investors] to generate revenue from ticket fares, advertisement [material], and commercial services inside these stations, stated Omar El-Bakry, deputy to the minister. "The government will act as a regulator, while the private sector will run and operate the stations.
