Egypt Considering Building First Express Train from Luxor to Hurghada

Projects for establishing a train interlinking different regions within Egypt, including Luxor to Hurghada and 6th of October to Aswan and Luxor, were discussed on Wednesday in a meeting between Minister of Transportation Hesham Arafat and officials from China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation CCECC, reports Egypt Independent. 

Adding that a Spanish consultation firm has already arranged for preparatory research on both those ventures, Arafat believes that these projects will help promote tourism as well as facilitate the journey for the increasing number of travelers going to the Red Sea. 

Arafat adds that the projects will likely be carried out by the government through the public - private partnership (PPP) and the build-operate-transfer (BOT) system. 

These projects come in an effort to increase efficiency and connectivity. 

Earlier in 2017, an agreement for USD 739 million electric trains connecting 10th of Ramadan City and New Cairo to the new administrative capital was signed in September by President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi and Chinese company Xi Jinping. In 2015, USD 600 million went into a contract to CCECC for the improvement of Egypt's existing railways.