TEHRAN – Iran is on track to achieve its 2025 target of transporting 54 million tons of domestic and international freight by rail, the head of the Islamic Republic of Iran Railways (RAI) said, citing improved locomotive readiness across the network.

Jabarali Zakeri, head of RAI, told a meeting of the national railway transport commission that close coordination among all departments—especially deputies and mid-level managers—will be key to achieving the rail system’s freight targets for the Iranian year 1404, which ends in March 2026.

Zakeri, who also serves as deputy transport and urban development minister, said that more than 570 freight locomotives were operational at the beginning of the current Iranian year, and that the target of 54 million tons is “fully achievable” based on the operational plans of regional departments.

He stressed that performance assessments for both headquarters and regional managers would be based on their ability to meet freight goals, and warned that no excuse would be accepted for any shortfalls given the current locomotive capacity.

Zakeri praised the northeastern Khorasan region for its strong growth in international rail freight over the past year and highlighted the strategic roles of both Khorasan and Hormozgan in expanding Iran’s transit capacity. He said growth in these regions would be central to achieving the goal of moving 8 million tons of international transit freight by rail.

To boost both domestic and international freight volumes, Zakeri urged regional directors to engage more actively with freight forwarding companies and support their operations.

Zakeri also announced that additional high-speed trains with a maximum speed of 160 km/h will be added to the Tehran-Mashhad line starting this summer. The route is considered a flagship passenger service for the national railway system.

He called for a thorough review of unnecessary delays at railway stations and urged an acceleration of the replacement of old rail switches with modern concrete ones.

Zakeri reiterated the ministry’s goal of increasing average speeds on the Tehran–Mashhad passenger line to 160 km/h and cutting the travel time to between 6 and 8 hours.

EF/