Suez Canal underwater tunnels to operate 24/7 starting August 9

CAIRO – 9 August 2020: Chairman of the Suez Canal Auhtority Osama Rabie announced that the tunnels passing beneath the international waterway connecting Sinai Peninsula with the rest of Egypt will operate 24/7 starting August 9, 2020.

Until maintenance and renovation works are over, the four tunnels will operate partially on Saturdays and Sundays, and close for 6 hours on Monday from 2:00 a.m. until 8:00 a.m.

There are two tunnels dubbed "Tahya Misr" in Ismailiyah, and two tunnels dubbed "3rd of July" in Port Said. Those used to operate from 9:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. There is a fifth tunnel called "Martyr Ahmed Hamdi" and it already operates 24/7.

In a statement released Sunday, Rabie pointed out that the decisions are in fulfillment of the instructions of President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi who urged facilitating the movement of citizens across the country and paving the way for developmental projects in Sinai and the Suez Canal Axis.

On August 6, Egypt celebrated the fifth anniversary of the inauguration of the New Suez Canal dug in parallel to the original one in order to enlarge the international waterway.