Baku-Tbilisi-Kars Railway to Connect Nakhichevan

A railway project between the Turkish cities of Kars, Igdir and Nakhichevan in Azerbaijan is already at the implementation stage, which will be integrated with the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars (BTK) railway in the future.

This was stated by the head of the project, Osman Beserek, in an interview with the Report publication.

According to him, the Nakhichevan-Igdir route will reduce the travel time to Kars to 85 minutes, and the integration with the BTK will contribute to the development of trade relations between Europe and Asia and create new prospects for international freight transportation.

Ultimately, the transit time between Central Asia and Europe will be reduced from 18 days to 12 days.

Within the framework of the project, 5 new railway stations will be built in Turkey, namely in Digor, Tozluca, Igdir, Aralik and Dilucu. Currently, the main works are underway in Igdir.

The total length of the Kars-Igdir-Nakhichevan railway line will be approximately 224 km. The first construction base is already being built in Igdir, after which the construction of the railway line will begin immediately.

The double-track railway route will be fully electrified and equipped with signaling. The project is planned to be implemented in five years.

The project includes the construction of 3 viaducts (arch structures) with a total length of 2,800 meters and 5 tunnels with a length of 11.3 km, as well as 10 bridges. 480 water pipelines, 145 underground and 27 overpasses, as well as 19 lockable and openable crossings will be constructed. Soil stabilization and other earthworks will be carried out in many areas.

According to Osman Beserek, “The Kars-Igdir-Nakhichevan railway is part of the Zangezur corridor and will not only connect Turkey with Azerbaijan, but also become one of the main arteries for world transport and trade routes.”

After the railway is opened, trains will run on it at a maximum speed of 160 km/h.

Info: ka.jnews.ge