Winter Plans for Baku-Tbilisi-Kars Railway Construction

Before the end of 2011, Georgian Railways will spend around USD 400 mln on the construction of the Georgian segment of a railway running from Azerbaijan to Turkey. According to the deputy chair of Azerbaijan Railways, Gurban Nazarov, around 65% of the works on the Georgian segment of railways are finished. The pilot launching of the first train is planned for the end of 2012. China, Kazakhstan and some other countries are interested in this route. Starting from 2013 this railway will start running regularly and Georgia and Azerbaijan are planning to buy new carriages to satisfy the demand. Despite the winter season approaching, the construction works on the railways are continuing without delays employing around 4,000 workers.

It is supposed that when the railway starts functioning, annually around 30 mln tons of cargo will be transported along it. Moreover, when the tunnel will be constructed under the Bosporus this will become a very convenient route connecting Europe with Asia.