Established 1880
gazette@eltahrir.net.eg
gazette@eltahrir.net.eg
Thursday 27 april 2006
By Vada Hart Cairo's location at the beginning of the delta has had many different centres in its history. Once, known as Memphis, the area is now only a part of Giza. Then there is what is now known as Old Cairo, still well populated and active. Then there was a movement upward towards the hills and the formation of the Citadel. Central modern Cairo later was a business, cultural and government area--now vastly overcrowded and a traffic disaster. Heliopolis was a good residential area and has continuously gained more businesses and other activities. Due to the crowding in central Cairo and the ever increasing trouble to transportation, there is a new process to relocate the centre to outside Heliopolis--New Cairo. Instead of building a complete new city, it is planned to relocate the centre, including governmental buildings, to this area into the desert on the fringe of Cairo. Already infrastructure has prepared the way. Some schools are flourishing there and with wide streets and well-planned new government buildings, this relocation could solve many problems for the future. Of course, even this, is costly, but necessary. However, there will still remain a transportation problem, Many people will not find affordable housing in the new area and must come a distance to get to work. This has been found true of people living in 6 October and other new satellite cities. So, the new area for Cairo will also have problems. More bridges are not a solution, but only add to the problem. The excuse of the large population is unhelpful. Many cities of the world have large populations and yet have no congestion of traffic. For example, London and New York have scarcely any private cars on the street. Seattle in America has a very efficient bus service every few minutes in every section of the city and reasonably priced. Some people join a car rental service for longer trips and pay monthly for this service, not needing to own a car when needed. Cairo could add more cars to the subway, for example and instead of building more bridges could subsidise a fleet of good buses, reasonably priced and many people would prefer such a service rather than taking a private car through traffic and then driving around looking for a parking place. Then one must make repairs on the car, replace broken parts, pay for garage fees, etc. I sold my car as I found it too nerve-racking waiting to move in Kasr El Aini for half an hour or so to go a few blocks. Taxis pick you up and drop you where you want to go and you have no garage fees and a search for a parking place. You don't worry about the car being damaged by hoodlums or getting a spare part which must be imported. I hear many employees complaining that a good part of their salaries must be spent on transportation. Even a half way decent bus these days costs one Egyptian pound, and sometimes a mini-bus takes two pounds. Just getting to work is expensive and with higher prices for food, life becomes a great struggle. Even with the development of a new area for Cairo, this problem will continue unless a fleet of decent buses is subsidised by the government. Eventually, if centralised government changes into smaller units in the various governorates, this could be useful. The positive note here is that the problem is being studied and this can hopefully bring about the necessary changes. In the meantime, if you have a private car, why not pick up a fellow worker, or two, on your way to work? |
