The Egyptian National Railway Authority (ENRA) is losing EGP 5m daily due to the disruptions of service, with EGP 30m losses in the last six days, said the ENRA deputy head of financial affairs Talaat Kassab.
Following the dispersal of sit-ins near Rabaa Al-Adaweya Mosque and in Al-Nahda Square, ENRA on Wednesday stopped all trains, causing substantial losses to the transportation service.
Kassab said the losses started the day of the Rabaa sit-in dispersal, following a Ministry of Interior (MOI) decision to suspend train operations across the country for security purposes.
“Egypt’s train movements were completely halted between Cairo, Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt,” said Kassab.
Kassab said is it still unclear when the trains will resume normal operation: “ENRA is awaiting further notice.”
He said the ENRA instructed all maintenance sectors in all railway lines to keep the trains in order “especially after the recent attack of some of supporters of the ousted president Mohamed Morsi, cutting out rods of a number of railway lines.”
The losses in public transportation reached EGP 900,000 due to the cost of route change, avoiding clash areas and its complete suspension during the curfew hours, reported Al-Borsa.
The forcibly dispersion of the sit-ins has sparked waves of violence on the streets, affecting various sectors like transportation, banking and the stock market; many multinational companies have suspended their operations in Egypt until further notice.
