JANUARY 10 is due to see the launch of a container shuttle service from Uzbekistan to the Gulf via Sarakhs, following the signing of an accord in Tehran during November between Uzbekiston Temir Yollari and Iranian Islamic Republic Railways.
According to UTY Operations Director Farhod Jalalov, the shuttle will run from Akaltyn, in Uzbekistan’s Syrdarya region, through Turkmenistan to Sarakhs, and then to the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas. He says Uzbek firms are interested in shipping cotton products via the service. The train will initially operate weekly, with 26 wagons each conveying two containers. End-to-end journey time is put at 84h.
UTY has also signed a co-operation protocol with Kazakhstan Railways for introduction of container shuttle services on the Almaty - Tehran - Istanbul route.
- UTY Chairman Ravshan Zohidov has been appointed head of the country’s Traceca commission, negotiating with neighbouring governments for development of the so-called Transport Corridor Europe - Caucasus - Asia, which was formally launched by an intergovernmental summit in Baku in 1998.
