Ambassador hails ‘brilliant’ Alstom team behind new Cairo monorail trains

The British Ambassador to Egypt has visited a new monorail system in Cairo for which Alstom’s Derby site has supplied the trains.

Gareth Bayley OBE recently visited the Egyptian capital to witness the construction of the new Cairo Monorail system.

As part of the visit, he was able to enjoy a test run inside one of the Derby-built four-car Alstom Innovia 300 units that will serve passengers along the 61-mile-long network once operational.

The Cairo Monorail trains were assembled and tested at Alstom’s Litchurch Lane Works as part of a £2.3 billion contract to construct and run the new Egyptian network.

This marked the first export of UK-manufactured rolling stock since Derby-built trains were supplied to South Africa for the Gautrain rail system in 2008.

Mr Bayley said: “I was impressed by my visit to Cairo’s brand-new monorail where I tested the cutting-edge train carriages that the brilliant Alstom team have produced.

“This project is an excellent example of the growing UK-Egypt trade cooperation and highlights the UK’s support for Egypt’s ambitions in providing greener and more sustainable solutions and services to its people.”

In total, 272 monorail cars for Cairo were assembled and tested in Derby, which is also home to Alstom’s Global Centre of Excellence for Monorail.

In January this year, the team in Derby celebrated the completion of the final Cairo Monorail car off the production lines.

The monorail project has supported hundreds of jobs at Alstom and across the UK.

Alstom’s Derby Litchurch Lane Works is the UK’s largest and longest established train factory, and the only facility in Britain able to design, engineer, build and test trains for domestic and export markets.

The first train was dispatched from the Litchurch Lane site on 14 June 2021 – which was 20 months post-contract signature – with the last train departing on 16 January this year.

Ben Lezala, Cairo Monorail project director at Alstom, said: “We were honoured to welcome the British Ambassador, along with the Egyptian Deputy Minister of Transport and Chairman of the National Authority for Tunnels, for a site tour of our advanced monorail system.

“This visit was a testament to the strong partnership between the UK and Egypt, reflecting our shared commitment to innovative infrastructure projects for the country.

“Our discussions underscored the importance of collaborative efforts in driving environmentally friendly mobility forward.

“By working together, we are developing integrated transport solutions that not only enhance efficiency and connectivity but also promote sustainable practices, contributing to the development of smarter and more resilient cities that meet the growing demands of urban populations.”