Egypt has announced plans to set up two monorail projects - a 52-km-long line linking the new administrative capital with East Cairo and downtown and a 35-km-network connecting Sixth of October City with Giza, said a report.

The proposed monorail project, which will have 27 trains, will be able to transport around 48,000 passengers per hour in each direction, with a journey time of 35 minutes, reported Daily News Egypt, citing a senior minister.

"The first phase will have 108 railroad cars that can transport 24,000 passengers at speeds of up to 80 kilometres per hour," remarked Mostafa Madbouly, the Minister of Housing, Utilities, and Urban Communities.

He called upon both international and local companies to co-ordinate with the government and asked them to prepare engineering designs, finance, procurement, construction, operation, and maintenance proposals for the monorail project before January 15 next year.

The project will accelerate the development of the new administrative capital and will help meet passenger demand according to current and future development plans for the years 2020, 2030, and 2050, stated Madbouly, who is also the acting Prime Minister.

According to him, the project will be completed in three years. Once the monorail starts operating in 2020, it would be able to transport 250,000 passengers daily, he added.