Egyptian National Railways (ENR) has awarded Germany’s Siemens a contract to deploy advanced signalling and communications technology across 260 kilometres of rail track.

The routes to be modernised include the rail line running between Benha and Port Said to the northeast and between Zagazig and Abu Kebir in the north of Cairo.

These routes, cites Siemens, will have their interlocking systems replaced with modern, centrally controlled electronic systems. These include new point mechanisms, level-crossing technology, and communications infrastructure. Apart from the track, the modernisation project will also cover about 20 stations, and the equipping of the operations control centre located in the city of Zagazig. The works are expected to be completed and the routes commissioned by 2020.

Once completed, the new systems will enable the railway’s maximum speed to be raised from 140 kilometres per hour (kph) to 160kph.

“The Egyptian rail network carries about 500 million passengers and 6 million tonnes of freight annually, and a capable, robust transport network is essential to accommodate rapid population and industrial growth,” says Joerg Scheifler, a senior executive vice-president at Siemens Middle East.

ENR has launched a comprehensive railway modernisation plan. In November 2015, it announced it was seeking interest for consultancy services for a reform strategy involving its deteriorating railway sector. It has multiple planned and under-way signalling schemes, including those for the Sohag-Naga Hamady, Asyut-Sohag, and Luxor-Aswan lines, among others.