Artistic underground
For nearly three kilometers under the heart of Cairo's
historical core, a controversial solution to the
city's modern day traffic problems takes passer-by,
both above and below ground, on a unique adventure.
cairolive.com tours the newly opened Al-Azhar tunnel. Plus, don't miss these great pics of some of the tunnel's
unique architectural quirks.
by Tarek Atia
It's hard to imagine what might be above you as you
speed your way through the new tunnel linking downtown
Cairo to the city's main East-West boulevard. That's
part of a tunnel's job -- keeping things out of sight
and out of mind, for both those above and below the
ground.
That is also what makes this particular tunnel unique.
Burrowing under what it burrows under certainly took
courage -- after all, we're talking about Muezz lidin
Illah Street, an area which contains one of the
world's highest concentrations of Islamic monumental
architecture, including historic mosques, sabils and
madrasas. It is also home to hundreds of traditional
craftsmen and the world famous Khan El-Khalili bazaar,
one of the city's longest-running (we're talking
hundreds of years) tourist attractions.
Critics call it risky. They site potential damage to
the fragile composition of earth that has kept all
these buildings standing for hundreds, sometimes
thousands of years.
But it is also the larger plan that the tunnel is part of
-- the overall vision for both the nature of the historic area
itself, as well as the city's future traffic flow --
that has made the tunnel such a talking point ever
since the idea was mooted and construction began.
In terms of traffic, the tunnel is part of a grander
scheme involving bridges, beltways and a tightening up
of laws in an attempt to eliminate the lawlessness
that governs so many of the city's streets. Although
motorists still find themselves regularly stuck in
monumental traffic jams, officials continue to insist
that we will have to wait until all the pieces in
the plan are put into place before passing judgments
on its overall effectiveness.
As for the tunnel itself, it is also part of a long
range plan to make the historic area above it more
accessible to tourists, by diverting the heavy traffic
underground. At ground level a pedestrian-only tourist
bazaar will flourish, with beautifully restored
streets and buildings following the model of "historic
districts" everywhere in the world that have become
the staple of the vacation industry. But it is precisely this
"shops and mosques" vision that also has some critics
pointedly referring to it as a sterile Disneyfication
of an area that has flourished for thousands of years
exactly as it is. Cynics argued that the area's true
character would be lost, and that many of its
residents would be forcefully displaced.
Business owners and residents of the neighborhood,
meanwhile, have eagerly expressed their concerns about
the possibility that they will no longer have
vehicular access to the neighborhood. How will we
bring in supplies, and take out products without
vehicles, they ask. Stressing that their plan is not
only to make the area more tourist-friendly, but more
resident-friendly as well (by eliminating businesses
in violation of local codes, reducing the general
overpopulation and increasing services, government
authorities claim to be taking these issues into
account as the pedestrian paradise plan progresses.
The opening of the tunnel is a major milestone in the
process. It was officially inaugurated by President
Hosni Mubarak this week. In perfect conditions, it
does indeed take motorists between Salah Salem and
Opera Square in less than five minutes.
The problem may be whether or not conditions are
always perfect. For now, adding to the confusion,
traffic police have re-directed much of the traffic
flow downtown in an attempt to gauge how the tunnel's
outflows -- into downtown and onto Salah Salem -- will
affect the general flow. Two way streets are now one way only,
and motorists are still not used to the change. Whether or
not the re-planning actually helps the traffic flow is
also a legitimate question. Downtown streets appear to
be even more crowded than before, and it can take up
to 30-45 minutes just to get to the tunnel if you
happen to be approaching it from the wrong street.
The tunnel itself is equipped with state of the art
technology, emergency resources, and -- as was
announced in the papers -- full cellular network
coverage.
Its slick modernity is in sharp contrast to the rickety, rather ugly Al-Azhar bridge currently connecting Al-Azhar Sreet to Opera Square.
That bridge is scheduled to be dismantled once the tunnel proves its worth.
Cairenes are also waiting anxiously to find out what things will be like once the whole area is automobile-free.
For now Al-Azhar Street is still used by buses,
trucks and cars galore.
Mubarak, during the tunnel's
inauguration, said that the dismantling would
commence after Ramadan. And indeed, with that holy
month -- famous as it is for its tremendous traffic
problems -- set to begin very soon, the tunnel will
indeed get quite a test. How it will fair is anybody's
guess. And although the Ramadan traffic flow is
certainly worse than most of the year, if it can keep
things moving during Ramadan, then it can keep things
moving anytime.
(cairolive.com, November 2, 2001)
Don't miss these great pics of some of the tunnel's
unique architectural quirks.
