Our monorail dreams are a little bit closer: The Transport Ministry signed yesterday a contract with Canada’s Bombardier to build the monorails linking 6 October City to Giza and Nasr City to the new administrative capital, according to an Ittihadiya statement. The 30-year contract includes the construction, operation and maintenance of the lines. The Transport Ministry said in June it was in final talks with a consortium made up of Bombardier, Orascom Construction, and Arab Contractors for the project.

Background: The consortium was tapped as the tender’s preferred bidder in May, after languishing without a winning bidder and contracts signed for four years. The USD 1.3 bn project would entail a 54-km-long monorail system connecting Nasr City with the new administrative capital, and a 42 km line that would connect 6 October to Giza.