U.S. grant promotes Egypt’s railway modernization

U.S. grant promotes EgyptÆs railway modernization    The U.S. Trade and Development Agency awarded a $658,323 grant to Egypt's Ministry of Transport in Cairo Wednesday to support the development of a positive train control (PTC) system for Egypt National Railways.
   PTC technologies and systems are expected to improve safety of operations on the Egyptian railroad, increase the capacity of the railroad's network to operate more traffic over existing infrastructure, and optimize the railroad's operations including management of trains and real-time adaptation to contingencies.
   'The recommendations supported by this grant are part of a larger U.S. effort that will help improve rail safety in Egypt by optimizing the safe movement of trains across the rail network, increasing rail capacity and reducing operations costs,' said Margaret Scobey, U.S. Ambassador to Egypt, in a statement. 'This effort will not only make Egypt's rail sector more competitive, but holds the potential to save lives through the reduction of accidents.'
   The introduction of a PTC system in Egypt builds on the findings of a USTDA-funded study completed earlier this year for the Ministry of Transport. That study included the design of a national traffic management master plan and recommendations on the creation of an independent railway safety oversight and enforcement authority to monitor compliance with safe operating practices.
   The opportunity to provide technical assistance to the Ministry of Transport pursuant to the USTDA grant will be competed on the Federal Business Opportunities Web site, which is accessible through the USTDA's Web site. The Ministry of Transport will select the U.S. firm that will provide the USTDA-funded assistance.