By the Gazette Editorial Board A train from Cairo heading to Aswan on Sunday derailed shortly before reaching its final destination. There were no deaths, but the accident, which cost the chairman of the Railway Authority his post, left six people injured. The accident was not the first of its kind this month. Another train, bound for Qena in Upper Egypt, also went off the track a short while earlier, leaving 55 passengers injured. This week's accident took place only a few hours before President Sisi told the audience attending the Sixth Youth Conference that the price of train tickets would not go up, unless the railway service was completely and competently overhauled. He was very clear about this in the presence of the Minister of Transport Hesham Arafat at the conference. The frequent occurrence of fatal train accidents has proved beyond doubt that maintenance patchwork will have no tangible effect on the country's rail network of 6,700 kilometres – the 28th longest rail transport system in the world. The public is well aware that the malfunction of the system is the product of poor overall upkeep of the past few decades in spite of official promises of reform. The present situation then has resulted from inefficient maintenance of dilapidated rails, and negligence in replacing old carriages and upgrading the signalling system. Last year, President Sisi said that LE180 billion was needed to renovate the railway. However, Sisi was keen this year to reassure the public that they would feel a big difference in the quality of the service provided before they would be asked to pay a higher price for the ticket. And this is what the people should expect. Prices of commodities and services have shot up in an economic reform programme which most social strata are bearing up with despite difficult living conditions. The public showed understanding for the increase in public transport fares following subsequent fuel subsidy cuts, but people have been reluctant to accept the recent rise in the underground Metro ticket. The reason is that the standard of services of this vital artery in the capital has of late been deteriorating. The citizens wished that the cash-strapped Metro Authority would find means to finance the upgrading process other than from the commuters' pockets. So the President's promise to keep prices of railway tickets unchanged until the completion of a comprehensive upgrading project, rather than a piecemeal maintenance process, has made the public heave a sigh of relief. The railway in Egypt serves inter-governorate transport which caters to millions of limited-income passengers who would indeed appreciate a long-awaited renovation plan.
