Cairo: Egypt’s Metro operating company has rolled out electronic payment machines accepting Visa cards at all ticket booths and subscription offices on Lines 1 and 2, the Transport Ministry announced. This initiative allows passengers to pay for tickets electronically instead of relying on cash, a step officials say is meant to ease congestion at windows and reduce delays caused by shortages of small change.

According to State Information Service Egypt, passengers can file complaints or inquiries through the hotline 16048, a dedicated WhatsApp number, the Cairo Metro’s official pages, or government complaints offices located in several stations. The ministry described the move as part of wider efforts to upgrade services on Cairo’s metro network, which carries more than 4.5 million passengers daily.

Cairo’s metro, launched in 1987, now operates three lines: Line 1 from New Marg to Helwan, Line 2 from Shobra El-Kheima to El-Monib, and Line 3 from Rod El-Farag to Adly Mansour. In May, Egypt received the first air-conditioned train for Line 1 under a 776.9 million euro agreement with France to supply 55 trains and provide eight years of maintenance.

Line 4, planned to stretch more than 100km across four phases, is under construction. Phase 1 will run 19 kilometers with 17 stations. Phase 2, covering nearly 27 kilometers and 21 stations, is under study. Once completed, the line is expected to move about 1.5 million passengers daily, linking 6 October City, Giza, Nasr City, and New Cairo.