TASHKENT, Uzbekistan, January 29. President Mirziyoyev instructed the leadership of the government complex responsible for housing, construction, utilities, transportation, and ecology to return rail transportation to pre-pandemic levels, Trend reports.
The President of Uzbekistan is holding a video conference call on priority tasks for 2024 in the spheres of construction, public utilities, transportation, and ecology.
He also emphasized that private companies should be involved in international bus transportation and that competition is needed in this area.
The management of the complex has been instructed to hold talks with foreign partners.
The head of state recalled that during the coronavirus pandemic, rail transportation was reduced by half, and people were forced to travel abroad by road. During severe frosts, there were unforeseen breakdowns of cars and buses on the roads.
Uzbek authorities suspended passenger trains with neighboring countries in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. At the same time, the transportation of goods by rail continued.
Meanwhile, the volume of transported transit cargoes (by road and rail) on the territory of Uzbekistan amounted to 11.2 million tons from January through December 2023.
The data from the Statistics Agency shows that rail transport carried 9.1 million tons (in relation to the total volume of cargo, 81.3 percent) and road transport carried 2.1 million tons (in relation to the total volume of cargo, 18.7 percent).