By Youssra el-Sharkawy A number of Egyptian-made double-decker buses will soon be running in Cairo's streets, for the first time, according to the Ministry of Trade and Industry and Cairo governorate. The buses can carry up to 70 passengers and will be serving routes that typically have a high density of commuters in order to reduce congestion and make public transport more appealing. The news was welcomed by many people who said that it would make a positive change to Cairo's streets. "When I heard this news, I felt happy because now we will have good buses like the ones in Europe. It will make the streets look better," Maha Ahmed, an employee at a hospital in the centre of town, who uses local transport every day to go to work, told the Egyptian Mail. A fleet of 10 buses will be the first to go into operation, to be joined by 40 more later in the year. The buses are 65 per cent made in Egypt with all the manufacturing taking place inside the country, according to the Youm7 website. All the buses contain wi-fi and air conditioning. "This is great because we will finally be able to use a clean and advanced transport option," said Ahmed Hassan, an accountant who travels everyday from the 6th of October city to Nasr city for work, which takes around two and half hours at peak times. "I hope these buses will help reduce the traffic jams, so we no longer have to spend hours getting to where we want to go," he told the Mail. In Egypt, which has a large population of more than 100 million, public transport is very important as it allows people from different walks of life to move around Cairo and other cities, paying fares they can afford. Since its launch in 1987, the Metro system in Cairo is one of the most used means of transport. About four million people use it daily to move around Cairo. Buses are also common, but usually more crowded than the Metro. So, some people prefer to use microbuses, which are a bit more expensive. The double-decker buses are expected to attract more commuters and people from every sector of society as they offer a new experience in the crowded streets. However, some experts say that the buses may not solve the Capital's daily traffic jams. "There is no doubt that the double-decker buses could solve the traffic problem if their routes were planned right. But first of all, we should solve the problems we have in the transport sector," Adel Mehana, transport expert and Chairman of the Fast Touristic Transport Co, told the Mail. Mehana said that 40 buses were not enough to ease the congestion in Cairo's streets. He added that microbuses attracted more people because they hadmany routes and went to many places, so they were able to meet the commuters' requirements. "In a country of more than 100 million people, 40 buses are definitely not enough. Yet, they will make the streets look good and that is a positive thing; but we should solve our transport problems before trying to look good," he added. Mehana said he believed there should be new legislation covering the transport of people and goods, to attract more investors to the transport sector. He added that drivers should receive professional training.
