Islamic Republic of Iran Railways - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Islamic Republic of Iran Railways (abbreviated IRIR or sometimes RAI) (Persian

Persian language

Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...

: شركت راه آهن جمهوری اسلامی ایران) is the national state-owned railway system

Rail transport

Rail transport is a means of conveyance of passengers and goods by way of wheeled vehicles running on rail tracks. In contrast to road transport, where vehicles merely run on a prepared surface, rail vehicles are also directionally guided by the tracks they run on...

of Iran

Iran

Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...

. Raja Passenger Train Company is an associate of the IR and manages its passenger trains including international trains between Tehran

Tehran

Tehran , sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With an estimated population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, one of the largest cities in Western Asia, and is the world's 19th largest city.In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to...

and Istanbul

Istanbul

Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...

and Tehran and Damascus

Damascus

Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...

. The Railway Transportation Company is an associate of the IR to manage its freight transport. The Iranian Ministry of Roads and Transportation is the state agency that oversees the IRIR.

History

In the second half of the 19th century, during the time of Nasser-al-Din Shah, a short horse-driven suburban railway was established south of Tehran that was later converted to steam. This line was closed in 1952.

The Tabriz

Tabriz

Tabriz is the fourth largest city and one of the historical capitals of Iran and the capital of East Azerbaijan Province. Situated at an altitude of 1,350 meters at the junction of the Quri River and Aji River, it was the second largest city in Iran until the late 1960s, one of its former...

–Jolfa

Jolfa

Jolfa is a city in and capital of Jolfa County, East Azerbaijan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 4,983, in 1,365 families....

line (146 km) was built in 1914, the Sufiyan

Sufiyan

Sufian is a city in and the capital of Sufian District, in Shabestar County, East Azerbaijan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 8,733, in 2,427 families. There is a major cement factory operated by the Sufian Cement Company to the southeast of the city. The city has at least...

–Sharaf Khaneh (53 km) in 1916, and the Mirjaveh

Mirjaveh

Mirjaveh is a city in the capital of Mirjaveh District of Zahedan County, Sistan and Baluchestan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 13,590, in 2,350 families....

–Zahedan

Zahedan

Zahedan is a city in and the capital of Sistan and Baluchestan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 552,706, in 109,488 families.-Geography:...

(93 km) in 1920.

World War II

The 1392 km (865 mi) long Trans-Iranian Railway
Trans-Iranian Railway
The Trans-Iranian Railway was a major railway building project started in 1927 and completed in 1938, under the direction of the Persian monarch, Reza Shah, and entirely with indigenous capital. It links the capital Tehran with the Persian Gulf and Caspian Sea...

from Bandar Torkaman

Bandar Torkaman

Bandar Torkaman is a city in and capital of Torkaman County, Golestan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census its population was 45,045, in 9,755 families.Bandar Torkaman is a port on the Caspian Sea. It is approximately from Tehran...

on the Caspian Sea

Caspian Sea

The Caspian Sea is the largest enclosed body of water on Earth by area, variously classed as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. The sea has a surface area of and a volume of...

to Bandar Shahpur on the Persian Gulf

Persian Gulf

The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...

was opened during the reign of Reza Shah Pahlavi in 1939. The railroad was built with rail weighing 67 pounds per yard (33 kg/m) and required more than 3000 bridges. There were 126 tunnels in the Zagros mountains. The longest was 1.5 miles. Grades averaged 1.5 percent south of Tehran, but then increased to 2.8 percent to cross the 7,270-foot pass between Tehran and the Caspian Sea. After the Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran

Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran

The Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran was the Allied invasion of the Imperial State of Iran during World War II, by British, Commonwealth, and Soviet armed forces. The invasion from August 25 to September 17, 1941, was codenamed Operation Countenance...

in 1941, this Persian Corridor

Persian Corridor

The Persian Corridor is the name for a supply route through Iran into Soviet Azerbaijan by which British aid and American Lend-Lease supplies were transferred to the Soviet Union during World War II.-Background:...

became one of the supply routes for war material for the Soviet Union

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, (Railway trend in Iran). The British built a 75 miles (120.7 km) branch line from the 3000-foot (900-meter) bridge over the Karun River in Ahwaz to a new southern port at Khorramshahr on the Shatt-al-Arab River. In 1943 3,473 American soldiers of the Military Railway Service began running trains between the Persian Gulf and Caspian Sea using ALCO RS-1

ALCO RS-1

The ALCO RS-1 was a 4-axle diesel-electric locomotive built by Alco-GE between 1941 and 1953 and the American Locomotive Company from 1953 to 1960. This model has the distinction of having the longest production run of any diesel locomotive for the North American market.The carbody configuration of...

locomotives rebuilt with 3-axle trucks and designated RSD-1. The Americans set up headquarters in Ahwaz, but were unable to tolerate the daytime heat, and generally operated the railway at night.

Challenging construction

The Trans-Iranian railway traverses many mountain ranges, and is full of spirals

Spiral (railway)

A spiral is a technique employed by railways to ascend steep hills.A railway spiral rises on a steady curve until it has completed a loop, passing over itself as it gains height, allowing the railway to gain vertical elevation in a relatively short horizontal distance...

and 1 in 36 ruling grades. Much of the terrain was unmapped when construction took place, and its geology unknown. Several stretches of line, including tunnels, were built through unsuitable geology, and had to be replaced even before the line opened. Nevertheless, the line was completed ahead of schedule.

In recent years the railways have undergone significant extensions including the 1977 linking to the western railway system at the Turkish

Turkey

Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

border, the 1993 opening of the Bandar Abbas

Bandar Abbas

Bandar-Abbas or Bandar-e ‘Abbās , also Romanized as Bandar ‘Abbās, Bandar ‘Abbāsī, and Bandar-e ‘Abbās; formerly known as Cambarão and Port Comorão to Portuguese traders, as Gombroon to English traders and as Gamrun or Gumrun to Dutch merchants) is a port city and capital of Hormozgān Province on...

line providing better access to the sea, and the 1996 opening of the Mashad–Sarakhs

Sarakhs

Sarakhs is a city in and capital of Sarakhs County, Razavi Khorasan Province, Iran. Sarakhs was once a stopping point along the Silk Road, and in its 11th century heyday had many libraries and a famous school of architects. Much of the original city site is now just across the border at Saraghs...

extension as part of the Silk Road
Silk Road
The Silk Road or Silk Route refers to a historical network of interlinking trade routes across the Afro-Eurasian landmass that connected East, South, and Western Asia with the Mediterranean and European world, as well as parts of North and East Africa...

railway to link to the landlocked Central Asian Countries.

Railway construction

Sarakhs

Route	Length in km	Date of Construction
Tabriz Tabriz Tabriz is the fourth largest city and one of the historical capitals of Iran and the capital of East Azerbaijan Province. Situated at an altitude of 1,350 meters at the junction of the Quri River and Aji River, it was the second largest city in Iran until the late 1960s, one of its former... — Jolfa Jolfa Jolfa is a city in and capital of Jolfa County, East Azerbaijan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 4,983, in 1,365 families....	148	1912—1916
Zahedan Zahedan Zahedan is a city in and the capital of Sistan and Baluchestan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 552,706, in 109,488 families.-Geography:... — Mirjaveh Mirjaveh Mirjaveh is a city in the capital of Mirjaveh District of Zahedan County, Sistan and Baluchestan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 13,590, in 2,350 families....	94	1920—1921
Tehran Tehran Tehran , sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With an estimated population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, one of the largest cities in Western Asia, and is the world's 19th largest city.In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to... — Bandar Torkaman Bandar Torkaman Bandar Torkaman is a city in and capital of Torkaman County, Golestan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census its population was 45,045, in 9,755 families.Bandar Torkaman is a port on the Caspian Sea. It is approximately from Tehran...	461	1928—1938
Tehran — Bandar Imam Khomeini	928	1928—1939
Ahvaz Ahvaz -History:For a more comprehensive historical treatment of the area, see the history section of Khūzestān Province.-Ancient history:Ahvaz is the anagram of "Avaz" and "Avaja" which appear in Darius's epigraph... — Khorramshahr Khorramshahr Khorramshahr is a city in and the capital of Khorramshahr County, Khuzestan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 123,866, in 26,385 families.Khorramshahr is a port city located approximately north of Abadan...	121	1942—1943
Sar Bandar Sar Bandar Sar Bandar is a city in Khūzestān Province in Iran.... — Mashhad Mashhad Mashhad , is the second largest city in Iran and one of the holiest cities in the Shia Muslim world. It is also the only major Iranian city with an Arabic name. It is located east of Tehran, at the center of the Razavi Khorasan Province close to the borders of Afghanistan and Turkmenistan. Its...	12	1950—1951
Garmsar Garmsar Garmsar is a city in and the capital of Garmsar County, Semnan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 38,891, in 10,951 families.... — Mashhad	812	1938—1958
Tehran — Tabriz	736	1939—1959
Gorgan Gorgan Gorgan Some east of Gorgan is the Golestan National Park. The city has a regional airport and several universities. Gorgan Airport was opened in September 2005.-Etymology:... — Bandar Torkaman	35	1960—1961
Tabriz — Bazargan Bazargan, Iran Bazargan is a city in the Central District of Maku County, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran. It is the most important Iranian ground border for importing and exporting. At the 2006 census, its population was 9,047, in 2,126 families....	192	1912—1971
Qom Qom Qom is a city in Iran. It lies by road southwest of Tehran and is the capital of Qom Province. At the 2006 census, its population was 957,496, in 241,827 families. It is situated on the banks of the Qom River.... — Zerend	847	1939—1971
Isfahan — Zarrin Shahr	111	1969–1972
Zerend — Kerman Kerman - Geological characteristics :For the Iranian paleontologists, Kerman has always been considered a fossil paradise. Finding new dinosaur footprints in 2005 has now revealed new hopes for paleontologists to better understand the history of this area.- Economy :...	80	1975—1979
Bafgh — Bandar-Abbas	626	1982—1995
165	1993—1997
Arpin — Maleki	24	1993—1997
254	1996—1998
Arpin — Mohammediya-2	122	1994—1999
Chadormalu — Meibod	219	1992—1999
Мohammediya-2 — Мohammediya-1	6	1994—1999
Bafgh — Kashmar Kashmar Kashmar is a city in and the capital of Kashmar County, in Razavi Khorasan Province, Iran. Kashmar is located near the river Sish Taraz in the western part of the province, and south of the province's capital Mashhad, in Iran, from east to Bardaskan, west to Torbat-e Heydarieh, north to...	800	1992—2001
Isfahan — Shiraz Shiraz Shiraz may refer to:* Shiraz, Iran, a city in Iran* Shiraz County, an administrative subdivision of Iran* Vosketap, Armenia, formerly called ShirazPeople:* Hovhannes Shiraz, Armenian poet* Ara Shiraz, Armenian sculptor...	506	2009
Kerman Kerman - Geological characteristics :For the Iranian paleontologists, Kerman has always been considered a fossil paradise. Finding new dinosaur footprints in 2005 has now revealed new hopes for paleontologists to better understand the history of this area.- Economy :... - Zahedan	546	2009

Fleet

Locomotive fleet are: IranRunner, EMD G26

EMD G26

The G26 is a General Motors diesel-electric locomotive built in the USA by Electro-Motive Diesel for export and in Australia by Clyde Engineering under licence. The G26 was developed to increase traction capacities on the tracks which supported lesser axle loadings...

, GE C30-7

GE C30-7

The GE C30-7 is a 6-axle diesel locomotive built by GE Transportation Systems between 1976 and 1986 as an updated U30C. It is powered by a 16-cylinder, FDL-series diesel engine. 1,137 examples of this locomotive were built for North American railroads....

, GE U30C

GE U30C

The GE U30C was one of the earliest successes from General Electric in the diesel locomotive market. With 600 units sold, the U30C proved to be a choice for customers who weren't able to purchase SD40's or SD40-2's from EMD due to mass orders...

, AD43C

AD43C

The AD43C is a type of mainline 6 axle Co'Co' diesel locomotive designed by Alstom and used by the Islamic Republic of Iran Railways . It was in production from 2000. Delivery started in 2002.-Background:...

and for homologation test China Railways DF8

China Railways DF8

The DF8 is a type of diesel locomotive used in the People's Republic of China. It was in production from 1984 until the middle of the 1990s, with batch production starting in 1989. The revised DF8B is still in production today...

.

British Rail Class 141

British Rail Class 141

The British Rail Class 141 was the first production model of the Pacer diesel multiple units.-Description:In the early 1980s British Rail were looking to replace the remaining 1950s first generation Diesel Multiple Units on lightly used branchlines...

railbus

Railbus

A railbus is a very lightweight type passenger rail vehicle that shares many aspects of their construction with a bus, usually having a bus, or modified bus body, and having four wheels on a fixed base, instead of on bogies...

es were also purchased after their service in the United Kingdom came to an end.

Diesel is a strategic industry, and by using this heavy oil as a fuel instead of gas for locomotives, the Islamic Republic of Iran has joined the 12 world countries which manufacture this type of engine.
Kerman - Zahedan 546 2009- Was completed August 2011

Operations

In 2008, the IR operated 11,106 km of rail with a further 18,900 km in various stages of development. Almost all of this is standard gauge

Standard gauge

The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...

of , but 94 km are broad gauge

Russian gauge

In railway terminology, Russian gauge refers to railway track with a gauge between 1,520 mm and . In a narrow sense as defined by Russian Railways it refers to gauge....

of to link up to ex-Soviet Union border states. There is also the no-longer-isolated broad-gauge

Indian gauge

Indian gauge is a track gauge commonly used in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Argentina and Chile. It is also the gauge that is used on BART , in northern California.- Scotland :...

section of from Zahedan to the Pakistan border that continues to Quetta

Quetta

is the largest city and the provincial capital of the Balochistan Province of Pakistan. Known as the "Fruit Garden of Pakistan" due to the diversity of its plant and animal wildlife, Quetta is home to the Hazarganji Chiltan National Park, which contains some of the rarest species of wildlife in the...

and the Indian sub-continent. The extent of double-track lines is 1,082 km. The Jolfa–Tabriz line is electrified (148 km). In 2006, IR reported that it possessed 565 engines, 1,192 passenger coaches, and 16,330 wagons. The vast majority of the engines are diesel

Diesel engine

A diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...

-powered.

Expansion

The majority of transportation in Iran

Transport in Iran

Transport in Iran is inexpensive because of the government's subsidization of the price of gasoline. The downside is economic inefficiency because of highly wasteful consumption patterns, contraband with neighboring countries and air pollution...

is road-based. The government plans to transport 3.5% of the passenger volume and 8.5% of the freight volume by rail. Extensive electrification is planned. The railway network expands by about 500 km per year according to the Ministry of R&T. According to plan, Iran’s railway lines are to reach 25,000 kilometres by the year 2025.

The State Railways Company has 300 locomotives with an average lifespan of 40 years. The Islamic Republic of Iran Railways, the Iran Power Plant Projects Management (Mapna

MAPNA

MAPNA Group is a group of Iranian companies involved in construction and installation of energy production machinery, including boilers, gas and steam turbines, electrical generators, as well as industrial scale petroleum processing installations, railway locomotives and wind power...

) and Germany's Siemens

Siemens

Siemens may refer toSiemens, a German family name carried by generations of telecommunications industrialists, including:* Werner von Siemens , inventor, founder of Siemens AG...

have signed a contract for 150 IranRunner locomotives for passenger trains. Siemens is committed to exporting to Iran some 30 locomotives in the first phase and manufacture another 120 using domestic capacities and expertise over the next six years (2007). MLC (Mapna Locomotive Engineering and Manufacturing Company)

MLC (Mapna Locomotive Engineering and Manufacturing Company)

Mapna Locomotive Engineering and Manufacturing Company is a manufacturing company in Iran. It was established in 2006 with the objective manufacturing 150 passenger locomotives in cooperation with Siemens AG...

is the manufacturing company responsible for this production. Another locomotive manufacturer in Iran is Wagon Pars

Wagon Pars

Wagon Pars is an Iranian train manufacturing company established in 1974, in Arak, Iran.Products include locomotives, trains, metros, freight and fuel wagons, and equipment for passenger boarding of aircraft.-History:...

which builds AD43C

AD43C

locomotives in partnership with Iranian power plant maker DESA diesel

Desa diesel

The Iran Heavy Diesel Manufacturing Company was established in 1991 to manufacture heavy diesel engines from 200 to 3500 KW for railway, marine and Power generation purposes.-History:...

.

In 2009, €17 billion in foreign investment

Foreign Direct Investment in Iran

Foreign direct investment in Iran has been hindered by unfavorable or complex operating requirements and by international sanctions, although in the early 2000s the Iranian government liberalized investment regulations. Iran ranks 62nd in the World Economic Forum's 2011 analysis of the global...

in rail industry have been secured, according to the Ministry of Road and Transportation of Iran

Ministry of Roads and Transportation (Iran)

Ministry of Roads and Transportation of Iran , was the main organ of Iranian Government responsible for administration of roadway, railway, airway and seaway transport inside the country and transport connections between Iran and other countries. Currently its Acting minister is Ali Nikzad...

.

In November 2010, the Transport minister announced plans to:

Extend the rail network to reach all provinces;
Build 16000 km of new railway

Affiliate companies

Raja Passenger Train Company is an associate of the Islamic Republic of Iran Railways (IRIR) and manages its passenger trains, including international trains linking Tehran to Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...

and Damascus
Damascus
Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...

. Raja Passenger Train Company carried more than 4 million passengers during 2003-05. The number of passengers traveling by rail increased from 11.7 million in 2000 to 17.3 million in the year ending March 2005. Every passenger wagon annually carries 7,340 passengers per kilometer on average (whereas the figure is 3,950 people per kilometer in Turkey and 5,220 passengers per kilometer in Egypt). Private enterprises are expected to operate 5,000 wagons by 2009 (50% of total).

Railway Transportation Company is also a subsidiary of the IRIR to manage its freight transport while the Ministry of Roads and Transportation is the state agency that oversees the IRIR. In Iran, for every wagon, some 1,050 tons of freight are being transported (2008). The cargo rail system between Iran, Turkey and Pakistan will begin regular operations by August 2010.

Zarand Company provides the national railroad system with freight and passenger train carriages.

Network and corridors

The railway network converges on Tehran and connects all major parts of the country. The Iranian cities of Isfahan and Shiraz

Shiraz

Shiraz may refer to:* Shiraz, Iran, a city in Iran* Shiraz County, an administrative subdivision of Iran* Vosketap, Armenia, formerly called ShirazPeople:* Hovhannes Shiraz, Armenian poet* Ara Shiraz, Armenian sculptor...

were linked to Tehran in 2009. Further extension of this line to Bushehr

Bushehr

Bushehr Bushehr lies in a vast plain running along the coastal region on the Persian Gulf coast of southwestern Iran. It is the chief seaport of the country and the administrative centre of its province. Its location is about south of Tehran. The local climate is hot and humid.The city...

and Bandar Abbas is planned. Furthermore the construction of Chabahar

Chabahar

Chah Bahar is a city in and capital of Chah Bahar County, Sistan and Baluchestan Province, Iran. Chah Bahar is a free port on the coast of the Gulf of Oman. At the 2006 census, its population was 71,070, in 13,837 families...

-Zahedan-Mashhad

Mashhad

Mashhad , is the second largest city in Iran and one of the holiest cities in the Shia Muslim world. It is also the only major Iranian city with an Arabic name. It is located east of Tehran, at the center of the Razavi Khorasan Province close to the borders of Afghanistan and Turkmenistan. Its...

railway, extending from southeast to northeast of the country to the length of 1,350 kilometers, started in 2010 with 3 billion euro credit.

Importantly, Iran lies at the crossroads

Crossroads (culture)

In folk magic and mythology, crossroads may represent a location "between the worlds" and, as such, a site where supernatural spirits can be contacted and paranormal events can take place...

of East-West and North-South transportation corridors that are active or potentially active. The western railway extension links to Turkey at the Razi

Razi, Ardabil

Razi is a city in and the capital of Arshaq District, in Meshgin Shahr County, Ardabil Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 1,749, in 413 families.- References :*...

–Kapıköy border. A northern connection to Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...

, the Caucasus

Caucasus

The Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...

, and Russia has a bogie-changing

Bogie exchange

Bogie exchange is a system for operating railway wagons on two or more gauges to overcome difference in the track gauge. To perform a bogie exchange, a car is converted from one gauge to another by removing the chassis containing the wheels and axles of the car, and installing a new chassis with...

station at the border at Jolfa

Jolfa

Jolfa is a city in and capital of Jolfa County, East Azerbaijan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 4,983, in 1,365 families....

. The southern routes connect Tehran to the Persian Gulf ports of Bandar Imam

Bandar Imam

Bandar-e Emam Khomeyni is a city in and the capital of Bandar-e Emam Khomeyni District of Mahshahr County, Khuzestan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 67,078, in 14,681 families....

and Bandar Abbas. A line to the Caspian Sea ends at the terminal of Amir Abad

Amir Abad

Amir Abad is a district in the city of Tehran, Iran.The main street of Amir Abad is called Kargar Avenue and is one of the longest streets of Tehran, extending from Southern Tehran's Rah Ahan Square to Northern Amir Abad....

and at Bandar Torkaman, and is part of a North-South corridor to Russia and Scandinavia. The north-east corridor connects Mashad and continues further to the bogie-changing station at Sarakh. For the landlocked countries of Turkmenistan

Turkmenistan

Turkmenistan , formerly also known as Turkmenia is one of the Turkic states in Central Asia. Until 1991, it was a constituent republic of the Soviet Union, the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic . Turkmenistan is one of the six independent Turkic states...

, Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....

, Tajikistan

Tajikistan

Tajikistan , officially the Republic of Tajikistan , is a mountainous landlocked country in Central Asia. Afghanistan borders it to the south, Uzbekistan to the west, Kyrgyzstan to the north, and China to the east....

, Kyrgyzstan

Kyrgyzstan

Kyrgyzstan , officially the Kyrgyz Republic is one of the world's six independent Turkic states . Located in Central Asia, landlocked and mountainous, Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the southwest and China to the east...

, and Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...

, this line provides access to the sea. A recent connection from Mashad to Bafqh has significantly shortened access to the port city of Bandar Abbas.

Tehran-Mashhad with a length of 900 kilometers, Tehran-Qom-Esfahan with a length of 410 kilometers, Qazvin-Rasht-Anzali-Astara with a length of 370 kilometers will all be built with help from China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

at a cost of $12 billion. In total, Iran has signed a number of contracts with China for the development of 5,000 kilometres of railway lines.

North-South Railway

The North-South railway is complete between Qazvin

Qazvin

Qazvin is the largest city and capital of the Province of Qazvin in Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 349,821, in 96,420 families....

and Bandar Abbas

Bandar Abbas

; the line is expected to be completed as far as Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan

by the end of 2011.

Links to Republic of Azerbaijan and Armenia

Iran's first rail link to the outside world appeared simultaneously with the beginning of the country's railway system, as Iran's first major railway (1916) connected Tabriz with Jolfa on the border with the Russian Empire

Russian Empire

The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...

. The link continued its importance throughout the USSR era; Iran and the USSR signed an agreement on cross-border rail transport in 1940, and amended it in 1958.
It is reported that during the late-Soviet era, some 350 railcars crossed the border at Jolfa daily, with the annual amount of cross-border freight reaching 3.5 million tons.

However, after the break-up of the USSR and the closing of the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan the Jolfa connection became a dead end, as it only links Iran with the isolated Nakhichevan

Nakhichevan

The Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic is a landlocked exclave of Azerbaijan. The region covers 5,363 km² and borders Armenia to the east and north, Iran to the south and west, and Turkey to the northwest...

exclave of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

In 2007, Iranian Railways, Azerbaijan State Railway

Azerbaijan State Railway

"Azerbaijan Railways" Closed Joint-Stock Company is the national state-owned rail transport operator in the Republic of Azerbaijan. The , gauge network is electrified at 3 kV DC...

and Russian Railways

Russian Railways

The Russian Railways , is the government owned national rail carrier of the Russian Federation, headquartered in Moscow. The Russian Railways operate over of common carrier routes as well as a few hundred kilometers of industrial routes, making it the second largest network in the world exceeded...

agreed on implementing the project to build a new line between Qazvin

Qazvin

Qazvin is the largest city and capital of the Province of Qazvin in Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 349,821, in 96,420 families....

, Resht, Astara, Iran

Astara, Iran

- People :* Religion: Mostly Islam Shi'a Islam* Ethnic groups:90% Azerbaijani, 5% Talysh, 5% other:Persian, Kurd, Russian * Language: Azeri, Persian, Talysh language- Famous people from Astara :* Ebrahim Nabavi - Iranian journalist...

and Astara, Azerbaijan

Astara, Azerbaijan

Astara, also, Azerbaycan Astarasi is a city in and the capital of the Astara Rayon of Azerbaijan. Astara is a short walk across the border from Astara, Iran.- The TV Tower :There is a 243.9 metre tall lattice steel TV tower, built in 1981...

.

There is presently no direct railway connection between Iran and Armenia, even though the two countries share a border. In 2009, Iran and Armenia agreed to build a railway linking Armenia with Iran’s Persian Gulf

Persian Gulf

ports.

Links to Central Asia

In 1996, Mashad–Sarakhs

Sarakhs

extension connected Iran to Turkmenistan

Turkmenistan

, as part of the Silk Road
Silk Road
The Silk Road or Silk Route refers to a historical network of interlinking trade routes across the Afro-Eurasian landmass that connected East, South, and Western Asia with the Mediterranean and European world, as well as parts of North and East Africa...

railway to link to the landlocked Central Asian Countries.

Former states of the Soviet Union have railways using a wider gauge

Russian gauge

In railway terminology, Russian gauge refers to railway track with a gauge between 1,520 mm and . In a narrow sense as defined by Russian Railways it refers to gauge....

, thus the Iranian Railways maintain break-of-gauge

Break-of-gauge

With railways, a break-of-gauge occurs where a line of one gauge meets a line of a different gauge. Trains and rolling stock cannot run through without some form of conversion between gauges, and freight and passengers must otherwise be transloaded...

services at borders to Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan, and beyond brief wide-track rail segments to the border crossing.

In 2008, plans have been made to connect Kazakstan to Iran via Turkmenistan

Turkmenistan

Links to Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan

Also under construction are the Khorramshahr

Khorramshahr

Khorramshahr is a city in and the capital of Khorramshahr County, Khuzestan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 123,866, in 26,385 families.Khorramshahr is a port city located approximately north of Abadan...

–Basra

Basra

Basra is the capital of Basra Governorate, in southern Iraq near Kuwait and Iran. It had an estimated population of two million as of 2009...

and the Kermanshah

Kermanshah

Kermanshah is a city in and the capital of Kermanshah Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 784,602, in 198,117 families.The overwhelming majority of Kermanshahi people are Shi'a Muslims...

-Baghdad

Baghdad

Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...

line as a link with southern and northern Iraq

Iraq

Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....

, and a line connecting from Mashad to Herat

Herat

Herāt is the capital of Herat province in Afghanistan. It is the third largest city of Afghanistan, with a population of about 397,456 as of 2006. It is situated in the valley of the Hari River, which flows from the mountains of central Afghanistan to the Karakum Desert in Turkmenistan...

in Afghanistan

Afghanistan

Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...

. A line connecting the city of Torbat-Hayderiayyah to Khaf on the border with Afghanistan was also recently completed (visible on Google Earth). It is being extended to Herat in Afghanistan.

Link to Turkey, and International Standard Gauge route to Europe

In 1977, the Iranian railways linked to the western railway system at the Turkish

Turkey

Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

border.

The route to the west into Turkey terminates at Van with a 90 km (56 mi) train ferry

Train ferry

A train ferry is a ship designed to carry railway vehicles. Typically, one level of the ship is fitted with railway tracks, and the vessel has a door at the front and/or rear to give access to the wharves. In the United States, train ferries are sometimes referred to as "car ferries", as...

for both freight wagons

Goods wagon

Goods wagons are railway wagons that are used for the transportation of goods .- Development :At the beginning of the railway era, the vast majority of goods wagons were four-wheeled vehicles of simple construction. These were almost exclusively small covered wagons, open wagons with side-boards,...

and international passenger traffic (baggage car

Baggage car

A baggage car or luggage van is a type of railway vehicle often forming part of the composition of passenger trains and used to carry passengers' checked baggage, as well as parcels . Being typically coupled at the front of the train behind the locomotive, this type of car is sometimes described...

only) across Lake Van

Lake Van

Lake Van is the largest lake in Turkey, located in the far east of the country in Van district. It is a saline and soda lake, receiving water from numerous small streams that descend from the surrounding mountains. Lake Van is one of the world's largest endorheic lakes . The original outlet from...

, which is at an altitude of 1650 m (5,413 ft), to Tatvan. The standard gauge route continues via Ankara to Istanbul via another train ferry between the Haydarpaşa terminus on the eastern side of the Bosphorus and the Sirkeci terminus on the European shore. This crossing will be bypassed by the Marmaray Crossing, a dual track

Double track

A double track railway usually involves running one track in each direction, compared to a single track railway where trains in both directions share the same track.- Overview :...

rail tunnel, due to open in 2013.

Link to Pakistan

The construction of Bam to Zahedan was completed in early 2009 connecting Tehran to Pakistan border with an opening ceremony on 19 July 2009. However international container

Intermodal container

An intermodal container is a standardized reusable steel box used for the safe, efficient and secure storage and movement of materials and products within a global containerized intermodal freight transport system...

traffic will commence operations on 14 August 2009 with transshipment

Transshipment

Transshipment or Transhipment is the shipment of goods or containers to an intermediate destination, and then from there to yet another destination....

(or transloading

Transloading

For the data downloading process, see sideload.Transloading is the process of transferring a shipment from one mode of transportation to another. It is most commonly employed when one mode cannot be used for the entire trip, as for instance when goods must be shipped internationally from one inland...

) between wide

Indian gauge

Indian gauge is a track gauge commonly used in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Argentina and Chile. It is also the gauge that is used on BART , in northern California.- Scotland :...

and standard

Standard gauge

The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...

gauge

Rail gauge

Track gauge or rail gauge is the distance between the inner sides of the heads of the two load bearing rails that make up a single railway line. Sixty percent of the world's railways use a standard gauge of . Wider gauges are called broad gauge; smaller gauges, narrow gauge. Break-of-gauge refers...

wagons in the new Zahedan Exchange Yard on the bypass line.

A recent update of Google Earth shows the complete route through difficult gorges south west of Zahedan that required 11 bridges, of which the largest bridge was 400 metres (1,312 ft) long, and 20 tunnels totalling 5320 metres (17,454 ft). With the completion of this route, the Asian sub-continent and European railways are connected for the first time, using train ferries across the Bosphorus (soon to be replaced by the Marmaray Tunnel) and the Lake Van train ferry (in 2007 Turkish Railways

Turkish State Railways

The State Railways of the Turkish Republic or TCDD is the government owned, national railway carrier in the Republic of Turkey, headquartered in Ankara...

started planning a rail route around the lake, avoiding the need for a train ferry). The Bam-Zahedan route reaches a summit of 1800 m (5,906 ft) some 40 km (25 mi) southwest of Zahedan.

Iranian Railways have been trying to persuade Pakistan Railways

Pakistan Railways

This article is about the rail company in Pakistan. For technical details and operations see: Transport in Pakistan.Pakistan Railways is a national state-owned rail transport service of Pakistan, head-quartered in Lahore. It is administered by the federal government under the Ministry of Railways....

to convert

Gauge conversion

In rail transport, gauge conversion is the process of converting a railway from one rail gauge to another, through the alteration of the railway tracks...

its route to Quetta

Quetta

to standard gauge, in order to facilitate the flow of international traffic to Europe. Pakistan responded in 2006 with a statement that it is to convert its network to standard gauge, and would plan a link with the standard gauge system of China. Alternately, three-rail dual gauge

Dual gauge

A dual-gauge or mixed-gauge railway has railway track that allows trains of different gauges to use the same track. Generally, a dual-gauge railway consists of three rails, rather than the standard two rails. The two outer rails give the wider gauge, while one of the outer rails and the inner rail...

track is quite feasible between the gauges used by Iran and Pakistan. Bogie exchange

Bogie exchange

and/or variable gauge axles might be interim solutions. There is a transhipment yard at Zahedan.

A through passenger service is being considered to supplement the occasional Quetta-Zahedan service, itself a poor shadow of the former Pakistan-Iran 'Taftan Express'.

Railway links with adjacent countries

Afghanistan

Rail transport in Afghanistan

Railways were planned in Afghanistan since the 19th century but never completed due to the Great Game between the Russian and British empires followed by the Soviets and the Americans. At least one rail track was built in the capital of Kabul during the 1920s but was dismantled as Afghan leaders...

- Mashhad-Khaf-Herat railway being constructed by an Iranian firm and funded by the government of Iran Azerbaijan - break-of-gauge

Break-of-gauge

- only via the Azerbaijani exclave Nakhchivan.
- railway link with Azerbaijan proper planned. Armenia - planned - break of gauge / Iraq - part under construction, part planned.
- one long link from Arak
  Arak, Iran
  -Industries:thumb|right|250px|wagon parsArak is one of the main industrial cities of Iran, possessing many plants for heavy industries especially for the metal and machinery industries, including:...
  
  via Kermanshah
  Kermanshah
  Kermanshah is a city in and the capital of Kermanshah Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 784,602, in 198,117 families.The overwhelming majority of Kermanshahi people are Shi'a Muslims...
  
  to Baghdad
  Baghdad
  Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
  
  .
- one short link of about 50 km links Khorramshahr to Basra
  Basra
  Basra is the capital of Basra Governorate, in southern Iraq near Kuwait and Iran. It had an estimated population of two million as of 2009...
  
  and is due for completion in 2006. Pakistan - break-of-gauge / - missing link from Bam
  Bam, Iran
  Bam is a city in and the capital of Bam County, Kerman Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 73,823, in 19,572 families.The modern Iranian city of Bam surrounds the Bam citadel. Before the 2003 earthquake the official population count of the city was roughly 43,000. There are...
  
  to Zahedan completed 2009. Turkey
  Rail transport in Turkey
  Turkey has a well-developed, state-owned railway system built to standard gauge which falls under the remit of the Ministry of Transport and Communication. The primary rail carrier is the Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Devlet Demiryolları which is responsible for all long-distance and cross-border freight...
  
  - via Lake Van - train ferry
  Train ferry
  A train ferry is a ship designed to carry railway vehicles. Typically, one level of the ship is fitted with railway tracks, and the vessel has a door at the front and/or rear to give access to the wharves. In the United States, train ferries are sometimes referred to as "car ferries", as...
  
  Turkmenistan - break-of-gauge /

Railway electrification

Although railway electrification in Iran

Railway electrification in Iran

Railway electrification in Iran describes the past and present electrification systems used to supply traction current to rail transport in Iran with a chronological record of development, a list of lines using each system, and a history and a technical description of each system.The project is...

was started in 1975 but then it was stopped for almost 30 years. A contract for electrification of the Tehran-Mashhad double-track line and the supply of 70 electric locomotives was awarded in 2009.
Speeds of up to 200 km/h for locomotive-hauled passenger trains and 250 km/h for tilting EMUs will reduce existing journey times of 7.5 to 12 to less than 5 hours.

External links

Videos

Iran Railways - Part I Part II - Part III - PressTV documentary

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

History

World War II

Challenging construction

Railway construction

Fleet

Operations

Expansion

Affiliate companies

Network and corridors

North-South Railway

Links to Republic of Azerbaijan and Armenia

Links to Central Asia

Links to Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan

Link to Turkey, and International Standard Gauge route to Europe

Link to Pakistan

Railway links with adjacent countries

Railway electrification

See also

External links