Tire Shops

One of the first things visitors notice in Cairo is the abundance of tire repair shops. Here are a few, plucked from my photo collection.




They all have a compressor and hose near the road. Besides the air supply, another common fixture inside most is an old bathtub to check for leaks.

It is pretty common to see someone stopped near one for air. We stopped at one in our taxi on the road from the airport the year before last at around 3:00 a.m. Yes, many of them are open late. I have also stopped in at a few in both taxis and private cars. I'd guess that if we took a taxi the six or seven miles into downtown this afternoon, I'd see anywhere from two to six people changing tires.

Why so many tire problems? I suppose "road hazard" is one reason.




These were all marked when I took the photos but I suppose the markers weren't placed until someone encountered the hazard.

But here is a real hazard: Some re-bar poking out of the street. I can just imagine someone coming around the corner, hitting one of these and looking for a tire shop.