The Cairo Metro (Arabic: ‫مترو أنفاق القاهرة‬, romanized: Metro Anfāq al-Qāhirah, lit.

"Cairo Tunnel Metro" or ‫ مترو النفاق‬pronounced [ˈmetɾo lʔænˈfæːʔ]) is the rapid

transit system in Greater Cairo, Egypt. It was the first of the three full-fledged
metro systems in Africa and the first in the Arab world to be constructed.[8][9] It
was opened in 1987 as Line 1 from Helwan to Ramsis square with a length of 29
kilometres (18.0 mi).[10] As of December 2019, the Cairo Metro has 65 stations
(mostly At-grade), of which 3 are transfer stations, with a total length of 77.9
kilometres (48.4 mi). The system consists of three operational lines numbered from
1 to 3. As of 2013, the metro carried nearly 4 million passengers per day.[2]

The Cairo Metro is run by the National Authority for Tunnels. The lines use
standard gauge (1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in)).

Contents
1 Operations
2 Network
2.1 Line 1
2.2 Line 2
2.3 Line 3
3 History
3.1 Background
3.2 Proposed plans
3.3 Construction works
4 Proposed lines
4.1 Line 4 (October-Oasis Highway - the Police Academy)
4.2 The New Cairo Monorail
4.3 Qalyub Line 2 extension
4.4 Long-term plans
5 See also
6 Notes
7 References
7.1 Bibliography
8 External links
Operations

Cairo Metro turnstile gates (standard ticket)

Old Cairo Metro ticket (front side)

Old Cairo Metro ticket (back side)

Since 1989, the middle two cars (4th and 5th) of each train are reserved for
women[11] (the 5th car becomes mixed-use after 21:00). There are blue signs at
every station that signify the position of these cars. These cars are used as an
option for women who do not wish to ride with men in the same car; however, women
can still ride other cars freely. This policy was introduced for protection of
women from sexual harassment by men.[12]

Cairo Metro operates from 05:00 till 01:00 (except during Ramadan, when it operates
from 05:00 till 02:00), with the remaining hours reserved for maintenance work.[13]

The ticket price was EGP 1.00 for each journey, regardless of distance.[14] The
Ministry of Transportation agreed to double the ticket prices, starting from Friday
24 March 2017, costing EGP 2 for the normal ticket, 1.5 for the minors ticket, 1
for the special needs ticket[15][16] after formerly costing 1, 0.75 and 0.5,
respectively. Again on 10 May 2018, the ministry of transportation agreed to raise
the ticket prices to be EGP 3 for 9 stops, EGP 5 for 16 stops and EGP 7 for more
than 16 stops.[17]
Network
See also: List of Cairo Metro stations
Line Termini Opened Latest
extension Length Stations
1 Helwan - El Marg[18] 1987 1999 44.3 km[10] 35[18][19]
2 Shobra El Kheima - El Mounib[18] 1996 2005 21.6 km[20][21] 20[18][19]
3 Attaba - El-Shams Club 2012 October, 2019 12.0 km[22][needs update]
39[22][needs update]
Total: 77.9 km[4][needs update] 94[18][Note 1][needs update]
Line 1
Main article: Cairo Metro Line 1
Line 1 (blue) is the oldest line of the Cairo Metro, with its first 29-kilometre
(18 mi) segment having opened in 1987.[10] The line is 44.3-kilometre (27.5 mi)
long,[10] and serves 35 stations. This line carries trains with 3 units (9 train
cars),[10] which have a headway of 3:30 to 4 minutes, and a maximum speed of 80
km/h (50 mph).[10] The line can carry 60,000 passengers per hour in each direction.
[23]

Line 1 had a train driving simulator supplied by Transurb Technirail that won the
international tender issued by Cairo Metro in December 2011.[24]

Line 2
Main article: Cairo Metro Line 2
Line 2 (red) is the second line of the Cairo Metro. The line is 21.6-kilometre
(13.4 mi) long,[20] of which 13 kilometres (8 mi) is in tunnels. It serves 20
stations, of which 12 are underground.[20] It is mostly in bored tunnel, with two
exceptions: a short section at the northern end approaching Shubra El Kheima which
is elevated, and a section just south of this by cut-and-cover. Line 2 uses the
third rail electrification system instead of the overhead line used in the first
line.[25] The communication extension for line 2 was provided by Alcatel in 2005.
[26]

The minimum headway for the line is 2 minutes 40 seconds to 3 minutes.

Line 2 has a simulator installed in Shubra since 2002 which was delivered by French
company CORYS.

The first tunnel to be built under the Nile River carries line 2 across the river.
[27]

Line 3
Main article: Cairo Metro Line 3
Line 3 (green) presently operates from Attaba to El-Shams club, with construction
under way for the remaining line to the northwest of Greater Cairo. Eventually it
will link Cairo International Airport all the way to Cairo University and Imbaba.
The line will cross under the two branches of the River Nile, as does Line 2. The
total length of the line will be approximately 50 kilometres (31 mi), most of which
in bored tunnel, and will be implemented in four phases.[28]

Phase 1 from Attaba station to Abbassia station opened on 21 February 2012,[29]

with five stations and a total length of 4.3 kilometres (2.7 mi).[9][22] Phase 2 to
Al Ahram Station was opened on May 7, 2014 by Adly Mansour,[30][31] with four
additional stations and an added length of 7.7 kilometres (4.8 mi),[22] for a total
length of 12.0 kilometres (7.5 mi). Phase 4-1 from Al Ahram to El Shams Club opened
on June 15, 2019 (with the exception of Heliopolis Square station).[32]

History
Background
The Cairo Metro (line 2)
As the biggest and most densely populated city in Africa, and the Arab World, the
case for a metro in Greater Cairo was strong. In 1987 that population stood at 10
million residents, not counting the two million or so commuters who came into Cairo
every day to work.[33] The capacity of Cairo's public transport infrastructure was
around 20,000 passengers/hour, which increased to 60,000 after the construction of
the Metro. In 1990 a study was conducted for the future needs of the city and
showed there was a need for about 8.4 million journeys by public transport and 2.7
million journeys by other modes, such as taxi and car. The actual public transport
capacity is 4.9 million journeys/day, 3.5 million short of the actual requirement.
This has led to a 50% increase in the number of taxis on the streets with
subsequent increases in traffic congestion in the city.[34]

Proposed plans
The idea of a metro was first proposed in the 1930s by engineer Saiyed Abdel Wahed
of the Egyptian Railway Authority,[35] however, the idea did not progress.
Following the Egyptian Revolution of 1952, there was renewed interest in the idea.
In 1954 French experts made a report about the future of the transportation in
Egypt. They proposed a metro encompassing two lanes, one 12 km long lane connecting
Bab al-Louq and Ismailia and a second 5 km lane connecting Boulaq and Abou al-Ela
Castle. They also proposed that there should be one company in charge of all
transportation systems.[35]

Later on multiple experts came to Egypt regarding that project: Soviet experts in
1956, Japanese experts in 1960 and French experts in 1962, which concluded the
following: The creation of a metro system with multiple lines. The first is a 5 km
line connecting Helwan with El-Marg going under the Kasr el Eini street and Ramses
Street.[35] The second line would be from Sayeda Zainab to Shobra going under
Downtown Cairo and would be 9.5 km long.[35] The third would be from Giza to
Abbaseya and would be 11.5 km long. The fourth would be from Al Awqaf to the Castle
and would be 6.7 km long.[35]

In 1964 British experts advised the creation of a metro line from Bab El Louk to
Shubra.[36] In 1966 Japanese experts advised the creation of a lane between Helwan
and El Marg and another one going through Mohandessin, Heliopolis and 26 of July
street, for a total of 26 km.[36] Lastly, in 1969, the government approved the need
for a study showing the needed capacity for Cairo's transportation system.[36] The
Egyptian Ministry of Transport issued an international tender for the creation of
the study. Eight companies applied and the French company Sufreto won the tender on
20 September 1970.[37] The study was finished in 1973 and included mainly the study
of the population development in Cairo and its needs for transportation capacity in
1980,1985 and 1990.[38] It concluded the necessity for three lines in greater Cairo
to solve the transportation problem. The first line would use the already available
railways (Helwan-Bab El luk and Al Laymoun Bridge-El Marg) and connect them through
a metro. It would be in total 43 km long. The second line would be 13.5 km and
connect Shubra El-Kheima and Bulaq going through Ramses Street and Tahrir Square.
The third line would go from El Darasa to Imbaba and would be in total 10 km long.
[39]

The priority for the project was the first line which would reduce 30% of the daily
transport to and from Cairo and would incorporate pre-existing rail infrastructure.
[39] The detailed study of the construction took 6 years from 1975 to 1981.[39] A
tender was made for the construction of the metro and the Egyptian-French company
Entra Nevra Arabco won it and had the task of constructing the metro system.[40]