One of Missing Links of North-South Corridor Inaugurated

TEHRAN – Iran on Tuesday officially inaugurated the Ardabil-Mianeh railway, a 174-kilometre line seen as one of the missing links of the North-South transport corridor.
The railway, whose construction began in 2005, was opened via videoconference by President Masoud Pezeshkian, with the transport minister and other national and local officials in attendance. 
The project is considered one of Iran’s most difficult railway schemes due to its mountainous terrain and complex engineering requirements.
The railway is divided into 12 sections, with 35 percent passing through mountainous and difficult terrain, 45 percent through hilly areas and 20 percent across plains. Engineers built 62 tunnels totaling 23.8 kilometers, four kilometers of large valley bridges, three kilometers of aqueduct bridges and 10 galleries extending four kilometers.
The line includes the country’s tallest railway bridge at 81 meters high. Construction required approximately 35,000 tonnes of metal materials including rails, rebar and cables, along with 220,000 tonnes of cement.
The project links Ardabil province in northwestern Iran, which borders the Republic of Azerbaijan as well as the Iranian provinces of Gilan, Zanjan and East Azerbaijan, to the national railway network.
The Ardabil-Mianeh railway is one of the missing links of the north-south corridor, connecting southern ports to northwestern border areas and completing a rail transit chain that can serve regional trade.
Ardabil produces more than four million tonnes of agricultural products annually, and the railway will facilitate transport of strategic goods to central Iran and export markets. 
Provincial officials called for the line to be extended to the Azerbaijan border, specifically through the Bileh Savar and Parsabad route, to unlock greater economic and transit potential.
Speaking at the inauguration ceremony, Pezeshkian said the railway was completed despite wars and sanctions. 
“We can show the world that despite all these crises, our Iran continues on the path of progress,” he said. The president noted that the project had taken 20 years to finish and that his administration had prioritized its completion.
The leader of Friday prayers in Ardabil, Ayatollah Seyyed Hassan Ameli, praised the government’s efforts and said the railway could have played a transformative role 
in regional trade had it been connected to the Caucasus earlier. 
He urged authorities to extend the line to the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Caucasus, describing this as essential for a major economic shift in the region.
Ayatollah Ameli said the Islamic Republic has managed to compensate for 500 years of historical underdevelopment despite being under economic siege and technological restrictions from Western powers. 
He called for greater public communication of such infrastructure achievements, arguing that enemy media campaigns target public confidence.
Construction of the Ardabil-Mianeh railway began in 2005. According to officials, progress was slow before 2015 but accelerated in subsequent years despite budget constraints. 
The project has already hosted test runs and pilgrim services. The official inauguration marks the end of 21 years of intermittent work, with the current administration providing 30 trillion rials in funding to complete the remaining works.