Baku, Azerbaijan, Aug. 24
By Elnur Baghishov - Trend:
Laying the rails for a 40-kilometer section of the Rasht-Astara railway will start soon in Iran’s Gilan province, Iran's Deputy Minister for Roads and Urban Development and Managing Director of Railways of the Islamic Republic of Iran Saeid Rasouli said, Trend reports via IRNA.
He said that laying the rails will be carried out at the expense of the Iranian government.
Azerbaijan will also invest $500 million in the construction of the Rasht-Astara railway, he added.
“Iran’s 6th development program emphasizes the development of railway transport, especially the North-South corridor,” he said. “Rasht-Astara railway, which is 160 km long, is the only missing section in this corridor.”
He noted that the construction work at the Astara (Azerbaijan)-Astara (Iran) railway terminal began after a long period of suspension, and a lot of talks were held with the Azerbaijani side in this regard.
“The contractor of the Astara-Astara railway project should create loading and unloading facilities at the railway terminal,” he said.
Astara-Astara railway line was launched between Azerbaijan and Iran in March last year. So far, a large number of freight trains from Russia and Azerbaijan have entered Astara rail terminal, which is being modernized in Iran’s Gilan province.
The cargo of these trains was transported by trucks to various parts of Iran. With the laying of the Astara-Rasht railway and completion of the work at the railway terminal, the cargo will be transported by railway from Astara to the southern ports of Iran.