User:Evguril/Line 100 to Cairo

Route 100 to Cairo (nicknamed "The Route of Peace") was a direct bus service between Tel Aviv, Israel and Cairo, Egypt.

The service commenced its operations on April 29, 1982, providing daily departures until 1987. After a hiatus, it resumed in 1990 with limited weekly services. Due to declining demand and financial issues, the service discontinued in 1996.

The service on the route was mainly operated by the major transportation company of Israel, Egged, and intermittently by Dan, as part of the Camp David Accords between Israel and Egypt.

History
One of the provisions of the Camp David accords between Israel and Egypt was the establishment of full scale economic and cultural relationships, including commencement of transportation links and the ability of free movement between the two countries.

As part of the accords, direct bus services between Tel Aviv, Cairo and Sharm El Sheikh were proposed to be operated intermittently by Israel's Egged and Egypt's East Delta companies.

Following fierce negotiations and disagreements on the pricing and the implementation of the route, and under pressure from the political echelon, an agreement was reached and the Cairo service commenced operations on April 29, 1982.

The planned service between Tel Aviv and Sharm El Sheikh was scrapped.

The increased frequency of direct flights between Ben Gurion and Cairo airports, operated by Air Sinai and El Al, in conjunction with the high prices and bureaucratic barriers for travelers on the route, rendered the service unprofitable due to decreased ridership. Thus, the service on the route ceased in 1996.

In 2006 there were some negotiations concerning the revival of the route, but due to the closure of Rafah crossing for Israeli citizens potentials services were able to operate only through the Taba crossing, increasing the travel time from 7:30 hours to up to 14 hours. These plans were eventually scrapped.

The Route
Bus model Mercedes-Benz O303 was assigned for the operation of the route. The layout for this bus was special, as it included a lavatory to accommodate for the lengthy journey.

The planned journey time was 7 hours and 30 minutes, departing from the central bus station in Tel Aviv and arriving at Abbasia station in Cairo. On its way the direct route stopped at the Rafah border crossing and a check-point on the Suez Canal.

In reality and on some occasions the route took 19 hours to arrive in Cairo, with 11 of them spent at the border crossings.

In the 1990's, the following pricing applied for the trip:


 * One-way ticket: 18 US Dollars
 * Round trip ticket: 32 US Dollars