The Egyptian Railway Authority (ERA) has taken delivery of the first 35 Russian built carriages ordered to replace ageing equipment operating along the country's main rail links between Cairo, Alexandria, Aswan and Luxor. The carriages are the first of 1,300 passenger carriages that were ordered by the ERA with the remaining carriages to be delivered over the next 40 months. The carriages will undergo testing until August, after which they are expected to enter passenger service. The new carriages will be rolled out on new Special Trains with fares approximately 20-30% more expensive than on current trains.