The first test freight train drove along the Astara-Astara railway bridge. The train, which began its journey in St. Petersburg, arrived in Iran. This unique event is one of the key moments in relations between the two countries. It also has a positive effect on the political and economic ties between the two countries. This path connects Russia and Iran through Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan is a key point in the economic relations between the two countries.
Recall that the Astara-Astara railway bridge is part of the North-South transport corridor. North-South (NS) is an international transport corridor (ITC) project.
The transport corridor is designed to provide transport links between the Baltic countries and India through Iran. The main advantages of the North-South transport corridor over other routes (in particular, over the sea route through the Suez Canal) are: reducing the transport distance by two times or more, as well as reducing the cost of transporting containers compared to the cost of transportation along the sea route. The length of the international transport corridor will be 7.2 thousand kilometers.
The corridor provides three main routes for cargo traffic in relation to the Caspian Sea:
• Trans-Caspian: through the ports of Astrakhan, Olya, and Makhachkala. In 2004, a railway line to the port of Olya was built.
• East: direct rail link through Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan with access to the Iranian railway network at the existing Tedzhen-Sarakhs border crossing.
• West: direction Astrakhan – Makhachkala – Samur, then across the territory of Azerbaijan to the planned Astara border station. In Iran, transit should provide the Astara-Rasht-Qazvin line under construction.
The purpose of the test drive on the railway Astara-Astara is to check the path, as well as the materials used in the construction of this railway. The opening of the path is planned this year.
We, as KDY Logistics, can proudly declare that we are part of a great historical project that will change the world in a positive way.