Railway network to be extended by 10000 km

Tehran, Nov 11, IRNA – Deputy Roads Minister Ali Nourzad said in a meeting with first deputy of Armenian transportation and communications minister that during the next 10 years 10000km will be added to the railway network of Iran. Speaking in a meeting with Arthur Arakelian, he said historically the two countries enjoy expanded cooperation and expressed hope that cooperation between Iran and Armenia in railroad transportation will be developed more than ever. He referred to the support of Iran’s government and Majlis for the extension of railroads in the country and said with regard to the expanse of Iranian territory presently passenger share in railroad transportation is 3.6% and share of cargo in this sector is 5.2% which will increase to 16.4% and 21.8% in the next 10 years, respectively. He said the intention is to increase the share of railroad transportation by four folds, adding that 10 billion euro is needed for new investment in this regard. Nourzad expressed hope that by signing a memorandum of understanding with Armenia in the field of railway transportation bilateral communication will be further expanded and transit of goods and services between the two countries will be developed. Arakelian, appreciating the hospitality of the Iranian side, said the objective behind the visit was to prepare the preliminaries for the expansion of railroad communication between the two friendly and neighboring countries. He further remarked that Armenia has implemented its studies and research work with regard to the establishment of railroad up to the Iranian border which requires construction of about 300 km of railway of which 100 km will be allocated to tunnels and bridges. The Armenian official said his country was optimistic towards Iran’s railroad plan for construction of 10 thousand km of railway in the next 10 years and said Armenia will be pleased to see that connection of Iran-Armenia railway is also taken into consideration./end