Iran close to launching Caspian Sea-Persian Gulf missing rail link
Iran is planning to inaugurate a major rail link this summer that completes the railway connection between the Caspian Sea in the country’s north and the Persian Gulf in its south.
Deputy Roads and Urban Development Minister Kheirollah Khademi said that the 37-kilometer Rasht-Caspian rail line will be ready in late July, Press TV reported.
Khademi said launching the rail link will allow rail freight transport from the northern port of Bandar-e Anzali to Iran’s main container port of Bandar Abbas in the south.
He said the rail line will enable Russia to transport its cargoes via the Iranian rail network to the Persian Gulf.
The official said the track bed of the railway will be fully ready within the next two months.
“With the inauguration of the Rasht-Caspian railway, (Iranian) railway will be connected to the Caspian Sea, creating the possibility for rail transport from Russia to Iran and via Iran to the South and Bandar Abbas,” said Khademi.
Iran has a larger railway project to connect the city of Rasht to Astara on the border with Azerbaijan. The project, which relies on Russian funding, will connect the Persian Gulf to the port of Helsinki in Finland through railway networks of several countries.