The train which will also be funded by China, according to officials, will save millions of dollars in fuel subsidies and reduce traffic.
The railway will connect the Cairo suburb of Al-Salam City with the new metropolis east of Cairo.
The project is set to start within two to three months, the head of the National Authority for Tunnels (NAT), Mr. Tarek Gamal Al-Din, has said.
The project will be financed through a loan from China to be paid back over 20 years.
After it is completed, the project is expected to save the state $130 million in fuel subsidies and vehicle traffic.
It will also cut traffic by 30 per cent on a highway connecting the capital to the Suez canal at Ismailia port city, northeast of Cairo.
The train will be able to transport 340,000 passengers daily.
The railway, which will cover 68km and will mostly be above ground, will run through the northeastern Cairo suburbs of Badr and Al-Shorouk,
Source: APA