The matter was set forth in the 33rd Ministerial Meeting of the Organization for Railway Cooperation (OSZD) held on Tuesday. Two of the participants were the Minister of Roads and Transportations Mohammad Rahmati and executive director of Islamic Republic of Iran's Railway Company Mohammad Saeednejad.
Despite 8,300 km of existing railroad network in the country, Iran’s Railway Company only handles 3.5% of passenger and 8% of cargo transportation on the average. Referring to the competition between road and railway transport sectors, the minister stated that the ongoing contest has always been of fluctuation depending upon which sector has been more flexible in offering better services to people and their respective clients.
He also announced that the East-West Corridor would soon be operational and it would have a great share in increasing the railway connections with the neighboring countries as envisaged in the 20-Year Outlook Plan.
The official pointed to the connection of important economic, trade and tourist centers of the country by railway in the meeting and also to the plans on linking Iran’s railroad network to the networks of the countries on both sides of the Caspian Sea, Turkey and beyond.
Given the higher safety and fuel saving advantages offered by railway in general, many plans and projects are underway to promote the usage of trains in Iran as it is so in developed countries. At the moment, development of 3,550 km of railroad network is another promising factor to this end.
During the 4th Socio-economic and Cultural Development Plan (2005-2010), it is expected that 53 million tons of cargo and 33.6 million travelers would be transported by railway sector, indicating 12% and 12.8% annual growth respectively.
ML/MA
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MNA
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