Visiting the third international exhibition of transportation and rail industry (Iran Rail Expo 2015) Iran's Minister of Road and Urban Development Abbas Akhoundi referred to plans in which Iran’s railway lines are to reach 20,000 kilometers by 2021 having in operation 20,000 freight wagons, 22,000 passenger carriages, and 750 locomotives.
Yesterday on the sidelines of the Tehran Expo, he restated the plan to have quadruple tracks around metropolitan cities and double tracks in other areas, enjoying advanced systems of monitoring and controlling train movements by 2021.
Further he added the annual investment required on rail transportation is 3 to 3.5 million dollars that needs private section participation along with state money.
Showing content with the Expo, he said that fortunately the Expo has been warmly welcomed by international companies hosting 150 domestic and 20 foreign manufacturers this year.
Akhoundi pointed to the forum of ECO railroad chiefs, along with the Expo that can encourage more efforts to increase the share of rail links in transportation systems that connect the Organization’s member states.
ECO comprises seven Asian and three Eurasian countries. Member states are Iran, Pakistan, Turkey, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. The main purpose of the Organization - that was set up in 1985 – is to promote economic, technical and cultural cooperation among the member states.
Meanwhile, Akhoundi described the inauguration of a new railway line between Iran, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan as an important event for all the countries of the region.
“This project will help the prosperity of trade and transit in the eastern side of the Caspian Sea,” the Iranian minister said. “It will also facilitate transporting goods in the north-south corridor and will also help provide a better transit connection between Central Asia and Europe.”
Touching upon investment on rail transportation, he further added that member states should make efforts to attract investments to expand their joint rail systems; what he said will lead to a broader cooperation over development projects.
The third international exhibition of transportation and rail industry (Iran Rail Expo 2015) is underway at Tehran’s International Permanent Fairground and will run through May 20.
The exhibition sees 80 percent increase in number of participating companies and 100 percent enlargement of the area allocated, officials said on Sunday.
It is scheduled to have workshops on the sidelines of the exhibition on recent technological breakthroughs in the field and also latest railroad-industry achievements of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
The four-day event has brought together organizations, institutions, and foreign as well as domestic companies specializing in railroad technology.
The exhibition displays passenger rail industry and services in urban, suburban and freight sectors, different types of wagons, propulsion, maneuver, and generator wagons, electric and diesel locomotives, spare parts for buses, freight cars, transport companies, rail companies providing after-sales services, maintenance services, and insurance services.
Companies active in railroad industries from Germany, Turkey, China, Austria, Spain, Malaysia, India, Hong Kong, and Italy have put to public display their products and services. The exhibition seeks to provide information to participants and the interested public on the latest technologies and achievements in railroad transportation and related industries, domestic industries, exports, Iranian capabilities, handling sanctions, and indigenization of railroad technology.