trans asian railway

TRANS ASIAN RAILWAY

Maqsood Ahmad Khan Pakistan Railways

Presentation to the Participants of 109th Course at PIRRTC, Walton, Lahore

World map of railway

WORLD MAP OF RAILWAY

OBJECTIVES OF THE TRANS ASIAN RAILWAY The Trans-Asian Railway (TAR) was initiated in the 1960s

OBJECTIVES•Provide a continuous 14,000-km rail link between Singapore and Istanbul (Turkey), •Onward connections to Europe and Africa. •Shorten the distances and reduce transit times between countries and regions,•Catalyst for the notion of international transport as a tool for trade expansion•Economic growth and cultural exchanges

TRANS ASIAN RAILWAY

ESCAP adopted a step-by-step approach to define the TAR Network due to following factors • The extent of the territory covered• The differences in standards• The differences in the levels of technical

development between railways in the region

TAR divided into following four major components

Northern Corridor: China, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, the Russian Federation and the Korean Peninsula

Southern Corridor: Thailand, and the Southern Chinese Province of Yunnan to Turkey through Myanmar, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and the Islamic Republic of Iran; Sri Lanka also part of this Corridor

ASEAN and Indochina: Sub Region of ASEAN and Indo-China

North South Corridor: Northern Europe to the Persian Gulf through the Russian Federation, Central Asia and the Caucasus Region

TRANS ASIAN RAILWAY

TRANS ASIAN RAILWAY

TRANS-ASIAN NETWORK(Latest)

• International importance of the link• Conformity with a set of technical requirements• Gauges - Axle-load -Speed• Compatibility of operational practices e.g. couplers, length

of trains• Software aspects of transport • Tariff-related issues• Institutional framework pertaining to the passage of goods

across borders• Break-of-gauge points - possible solutions • Missing links

Methodology and Principles AdoptedTRANS ASIAN RAILWAY

• Landlocked Countries • Economic Justification• Reliance on ports to connect national economies

to the world’s markets • Exporters of mineral resources • The continuing surge in the volumes of goods

being exchanged, and • Rail as an environmentally friendly and safe

mode of transport

TRANS ASIAN RAILWAYFEATURES IN FAVOR OF UTILIZATION OF RAIL TRANSPORT IN ASIA

South-East Asia:Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, Viet Nam

12,600 km

North-East Asia: China, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Mongolia, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation

32,500 km

Central Asia and Caucasus:

Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan

13,200 km

South Asia + Islamic Republic of Iran and Turkey:

Bangladesh, India, Islamic Republic of Iran, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Turkey

22,600 km

Total:   80,900 km

FACTS AND FIGURES – ROUTS COVERED

TRANS ASIAN RAILWAY

ASEAN AND INDOCHINA

TRANS ASIAN RAILWAY

TRANS ASIAN RAILWAY

NORTHERN CORRIDOR

TRANS ASIAN RAILWAYNORTH – SOUTH CORRIDOR

SOUTHERN CORRIDORTRANS ASIAN RAILWAY

TAR - BREAK-OF-GAUGE POINTS

TRANS ASIAN RAILWAY

China (1,435 mm) and Viet Nam (1,000 mm)

China (1,435 mm) and the Russian Federation (1,520 mm)

China (1,435 mm) and Mongolia (1,520 mm)

China (1,435 mm) and Kazakhstan (1,520 mm) Democratic People's Republic of Korea (1,435 mm) and the Russian Federation (1,520 mm)

Islamic Republic of Iran (1,435 mm) and Turkmenistan (1,520 mm)

Islamic Republic of Iran (1,435 mm) and Azerbaijan (1,520 mm)

Turkey (1,435 mm) and Armenia (1,520 mm)

Transhipment: transfer of freight by manual or mechanical means

Bogie changing: wagons are lifted on a set of jacks and bogies are inter rolled

Use of wagons with ‘variable-gauge’ bogies: Distance between bogies is reduced along a special transition track at reduced speed

Provision of Dual Gauge: two different track gauges on a single track foundation through the insertion of a third/fourth rail

Conversion of Tracks: of different gauges to a single gauge standard

OVERCOMING THE BREAK-OF-GAUGETRANS ASIAN RAILWAY

TRANSHIPMENT

TRANSHIPMENT

PAKISTAN RAILWAYS

AS PART OF TAR

PAKISTAN RAILWAYS AS PART OF TAR

Port

PortPortChahbahar

Bandar Abbas

Border Crossing Points Legend

TRANS ASIAN RAILWAYPAKISTAN AS TRANSIT COUNTRY

INDIALinkage Points Wagah - Tharparker Gauge Same ( Broad Gauge 5’ – 6”) – No

Transshipment Agreement Agreement Relating to Rail

Communication between India and PakistanPassenger Trains Interchanged at both the points Freight Trains Interchanged at Wagah onlyWagons Interchange The number of freight wagons is

equalized within every ten days

TRANS ASIAN RAILWAYPAKISTAN RAILWAYS AS TRANSIT RAIL

Passenger Train Rakes: Alternatively for six months by both the railways.

Major Goods Interchanged: Salt and Dry Dates from Pakistan - Poultry Feed from India. ConstraintsIntermittent Disruption of Rail Traffic

Passenger Service Freight Service Reason for DisruptionFrom To From To19-8-2006 17-2-2007

No Freight TrafficReportedly damage to track due to heavy rains

Passenger Service Freight Service Reason for DisruptionFrom To From To6-9-1965 21-7-1976 6-9-1965 2-9-1976 September 1965 War29-9-1994 6-11-1994 1-10-1994 6-11-1994 Plague in India1-1-2002 22-12-2001 By Indian Government

TRANS ASIAN RAILWAYINDIA

Wagah

Tharparker

IRANGauge Braod Gauge upto Zahidan, inside Iran (about

100 kilometers) from Quetta via Taftan, without break of gauge.

Rail Operation The passenger and freight trains run through upto Zahidan

Agreement Memorandum of Agreement

Sulphur and Bitumen from Iran Rice from Pakistan. Fortnightly

TRANS ASIAN RAILWAY

Freight TrafficPassenger Trains

IRAN

Constraints• Condition of The track between Quetta and Zahidan• Revision of Agreement• Detention to Freight Wagons and Locomotives at

Zahidan

TRANS ASIAN RAILWAY

IRAN

Constraints• Condition of The track between Quetta and Zahidan• Revision of Agreement• Detention to Freight Wagons and Locomotives at

Zahidan

TRANS ASIAN RAILWAY

IRANConstraints• Condition of The track between Quetta and Zahidan• Revision of Agreement• Detention to Freight Wagons and Locomotives at

Zahidan• Zahidan – Kerman – Gap, filled

TRANS ASIAN RAILWAY

AFGHANISTAN

• Afghanistan is a land locked country and has access to Karachi Port through Pakistan Railway,

• A Protocol between the two countries• Goods in Transit to Afghanistan (GITA) are transported from Karachi Port

to Peshawar and Chaman by Rail wherefrom to Afghanistan by Road

Constraints Political Conditions

TRANS ASIAN RAILWAY

TAR AGREEMENT

CONCLUSIONIn view of the constraints discussed above, it can be concluded, that the political instability in Afghanistan and intermittent disruption of communication between India - Pakistan, are the major issues and impediments in the way of smooth and through rail communication in the region. Without attending to these issues the trade amongst and beyond these countries by rail at a larger scale is not possible. Therefore, optimum use of economies of scale and of natural resources available in and around these countries (ECO / SAARC) is also impeded.

TRANS - ARAB RAILWAYS

ARAB RAILWAYS

Map of Africa (Railways) 1933

CAPE – CAIRO RAILWAY

VIETNAM RAILWAY

THAILAND RAILWAY

CAMBODIA RAILWAY

CAMBODIA RAILWAY

MOROCCO RAILWAY

EGYPT RAILWAY