Giza Plateau Upgrade: Phase Two
Phase Two will soon kick off, thanks to a 15 million (LE 116 million) loan from the Spanish government. During this phase, the entrance from the Fayoum road will become the main one, due to its vast area for parking. According to Abd El Eziz, hundreds of buses bring tourists to the site every day, sometimes “convoys of 50 buses from Alexandria and Port Said at the same time.” Once there, electric carts will take the tourists along the roads on the plateau to the Pyramids. “The second phase will include roads inside the plateau [for] better transportation,” adds Abd El Eziz.
A large visitor center will also be set up at the Fayoum entrance, equipped with cafeterias, decent bathrooms and a bazaar area inside. Phase Two will reinforce even stricter rules for local vendors of trinkets, postcards and animal rides who want to enter the site.
The Pyramid facelift stemmed from the authorities’ need for basic security and control. “…the only way to protect the Giza Plateau from urban development and [from trespassers]. The fence is up and control rooms are operational with golf carts on standby for a quick response should the guards see anything on the cameras. We also had to make a concrete fence next to the houses near Selman village,” says Abd El Eziz, adding that “…if you see the control room with the cameras, you’ll feel protected.”
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Tags: Giza
