Transport in Tajikistan
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Most of Tajikistan's transportation system was built during the Soviet era, and since that time the system has deteriorated badly because of insufficient investment and maintenance. Neither the Soviet system nor subsequently built infrastructure addressed the topographical division between the northern and southern regions of the country. Beginning in 2005, a series of major transportation projects sought to rectify this problem. The first such project, the Anzob Tunnel, was completed in 2006, providing a year-round road link from Dushanbe to northern Tajikistan. Air transport is considered unreliable.[1]
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[edit] Railways
The railroad system totals only 480 kilometers of track, all of it broad gauge. The system connects the main urban centers of western Tajikistan with points in neighboring Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. In 2000 a new line connected the southern cities of Qurghonteppa and Kulob. Passenger transit through Tajikistan has been hindered by periodic failures of Tajik Railways to pay transit tariffs and by safety issues.[1]
[edit] Highways
- See also: Pamir Highway
Tajikistan has an estimated 30,000 kilometers of roads, nearly all of which were built before 1991. One main north-south artery runs across the mountains between the northwestern city of Khujand and Dushanbe. A second main artery runs east from Dushanbe to Khorog in the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Province, then northeast across the mountains to the Kyrgyz city of Osh. Because the Khujand–Dushanbe route is closed in winter, the Anzob Tunnel was built to bypass the mountain crossing and open a route connecting Tashkent (Uzbekistan) and points north with Afghanistan and Pakistan to the south, via Tajikistan.
China has invested approximately $720 million for infrastructure improvements in Tajikistan, including the rebuilding, widening and improvement of the road between Dushanbe and Khujand which as of August 2007 is proceeding using equipment, labor, and oversight from China.[2]
In mid-2005 construction began on a bridge across the Panj River to Afghanistan which was funded by the United States and opened in August of 2007[3], and plans called for construction of several other bridges ultimately connecting Tajikistan to warm-water ports to the south.[1]
[edit] Pipelines
Tajikistan’s 549 kilometers of gas pipeline bring natural gas from Uzbekistan to Dushanbe and transport gas between points in Uzbekistan across northwestern Tajikistan. Tajikistan also has 38 kilometers of oil pipeline.[1]
[edit] Ports and waterways
Tajikistan has no access to the sea and no navigable inland waterways.[1]
[edit] Airports
In 2007 Tajikistan had 26 airports, 18 of which had paved runways and two with runways longer than 3,000 meters.[3] The largest airport, at Dushanbe, has flights to only a few international destinations. Few flights connect Dushanbe with Tashkent, which is the nearest airport offering connections to major European destinations. The next-largest airports are at Khujand and Kulob. State-run Tajik Air, whose safety record has been questionable, offers flights to other Central Asian countries, with the exception of Uzbekistan, and weekly flights to Germany and Russia.[1]
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d e f Tajikistan country profile. Library of Congress Federal Research Division (January 2007). This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ TAJIKISTAN: A CHINESE ROAD TO THE FUTURE?. EURASIANET. Retrieved on 2008-06-09.
- ^ a b CIA World Factbook. Tajikistan
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