Cairo's Sadat metro station to reopen soon: Police

Thursday 05-02-2015 PM 05:26
Cairo's Sadat metro station to reopen soon: Police
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Cairo's central Sadat metro station will reopen soon after being closed for a year and half, the head of police transportation police, Major Gen. El-Sayed Gad has told Ahram Online.

"We are preparing the station so that it will be fully ready for operation," said Gad, without confirming the reopening date.

Sadat station was closed following the bloody dispersal of a sit-in supporting ousted Islamist president Mohamed Mursi by security forces in August 2013, amid nationwide protests and violence.

Meanwhile, Minister of Transportation Hani Dahi said in December that Sadat metro station should be in full operation by the beginning of 2015. 

Eye witnesses told Al-Ahram Arabic news website that they have been observing cleaners outside the station.

Officials said the station was closed for "security reasons," possibly to prevent pro-Morsi protesters from reaching Tahrir Square.

Approximately three million people use the metro on a daily basis, according to Egypt's State Information Service (SIS).

The station is located under the famous Tahrir Square. Its closure has caused chaos and crowding in many other stations.

In January, the Commissioners at the State Council recommended obliging the government to reopen the station, as they have been getting more and more complaints.

In their report, the commissioners said there were no "realistic or legal" justifications for the continued closure of the station.

Also, a group of citizens filed a lawsuit against the president and the minister of interior over the closure of the station, one of only two stations where millions of underground travellers can swap between Cairo's two longer metro lines.

Metro transportation is known to be one of the fastest and cheapest means of transportation in Cairo. A metro ticket costs LE1 which is equivalent to 13 cents. 

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