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Egypt: Egyptian Railways – 125 Years Old

Categories: Middle East & North Africa, Egypt, History, Travel

Egyptian blogger Zeinobia celebrates here [1] the 125th anniversary of the Egyptian Railways.

Historically and internationally we were the second country after UK to have a railways. Today from 125 years on the 16th of September 1856 Egypt inaugurated the first railway in Africa and in the East.
It was during Khedive Abbas I [2] era.The Railway was from Alexandria to Cairo “209 km”. Khedive Abbas I whom we rarely remember signed  an agreement with Engineer Robert Stephenson [3] to build the railways  for 56,000 Pounds in 1850. In 1851 Stephenson had accepted to be Engineer-in-Chief to the Egyptian Railway between Alexandria and Cairo. In 1855 Stephenson inaugurated the first two moveable bridge in Egypt at Kafr Zayat and Benha.