Iraqi railway news archive

This is an archive of older news. Newer news now lives on a new page.

Even older news is on a separate page.

2005-07-01 Good news from Mark W Hemphill: Work has commenced on the IRR's Communications-Based Train-Control system, prime contractor Mafeks LLC, subcontractor Wabtec Railway Electronics. When commissioned in 2006, this system will provide system-wide computer-assisted dispatching from Baghdad, using Direct Traffic Control-Manual Block System authorities with reactive enforcement of authority excursions and speed restrictions. Train movement authorities will be transmitted by redundant paths consisting of radio links to repeaters supported by microwave and fiber-optic backbones, and Iridium satellite, and will be digitally displayed on screens in each locomotive cab. The dispatching consoles show the system graphically and are point-and-click operated. It's expected that the system will double the current traffic capacity of the IRR and provide a very high level of safety. It will support the possible future installation of traditional line-side signaling, cab signaling, floating-block signaling, or local manual interlockings. System architecture has been developed and currently the system software is being written.

I've examined the preliminary engineering drawings for the Iraq-Iran link between Basra and Khorramshar. The IRR is very excited by this link, and wants to complete it as soon as possible. To my knowledge, construction has not commenced. The most difficult item is a high-level bridge over the Shatt-Al-Arab, estimated at $70 million.
2005-07-01 Mark W Hemphill writes from Baghdad: Francorail 4141 has returned to service. Possibly one more Francorail will return to service. Both are to be assigned to Al Qa'im to move phosphate rock from Akashat to Al Qa'aim, and limestone rock from Waha to Al Qa'im. Service to Al Qa'im resumed in June. The entire Western Corridor (Baghdad-Al Qa'im-Akashat, Bayji-Haqlaniya) has not had a train movement since October 2003.
2005-06-15 Mark W Hemphill writes from Baghdad Things ARE getting better for the IRR. The IRR is steadily increasing its traffic levels, rehabilitating equipment, track, and facilities, and improving its security. From a near-complete operational shutdown in November 2004, it now has 8-16 train starts every day. Current service includes a daily passenger each way between Baghdad and Basra; a tri-weekly passenger train between Baghdad and Mosul (up one day, back the next, off Friday); and daily freight service between Rabiya and Umm Qasr. On the locomotive side, the 2800s (Chinese) are the backbone of the fleet. A few Henschels are running, too, and perhaps a few Macosas and MLWs. All of the Francorails are out of service and I doubt they will ever come back. None of the new Russian locomotives are running.
2005-05-31 Khorramshahr-Basra railroad operational by March. Khorramshahr-Basra railway line will become operational by March 2006, announced the head of Khuzestan House of Industries and Mines. Ali Hosseinpour told ILNA that millions of dollars worth of gravel will be exported once the railroad is constructed, stressing that the project will also help cut transportation costs.
2005-05-22 A recent photo of Baghdad Central station from Mark W Hemphill .
2005-05-16 Two Kirkuk rail stations' reconstruction complete Passengers and consumers in the Kirkuk area will be pleased to learn that two rail station rehabilitation projects were recently completed in Kirkuk. The Kirkuk and Al Maraei stations are the first two completed of four station renovations scheduled in Kirkuk Governorate. Stations in Al Thawra and Al Reyadh are scheduled for completion later this year. From all indications, the once bustling Iraqi rail system is on the track to steady recovery. Both station renovation projects took about four months to complete at a cost of over $70,000 each. The initial work mainly consisted of cleaning and removing rubbish from the sites and demolishing unsafe portions of the buildings. Station renovations included repair and replacement of plumbing and sewer systems, replacement of roofing and other structural components, painting, plastering, installing new windows, doors and frames, as well as flooring and tile.
Indo German Industries(India) emailed to say they can supply replacement spares for Alco 251 diesel engine such as liner, piston ring, cylinder head, liner sleeve & etc.. as per the international standard. So if you've got one, you know who to call! Kremenchuk Steel Casting Works can sell you assorted steel castings (nor surprisingly!), including wagon bogies
Pictures from Afghanistan, 1922-30.
Terrorists Confess To Murder Of Iraqi Railway Workers.

The dramatic confession, live on an Iraqi TV station, by a group of terrorists to the brutal and horrific murder of a group of Iraqi railway workers has been followed in the last week by re-opening of passenger railway services on the affected line between Baghdad, Basra and Mosul, Iraq's capital and her second and third largest cities, the IFTU reports from Baghdad.

Iraqi Security forces in Mosul report they have caught the criminal killers of 4 Iraqi railway workers; Kasim Shahin (train driver), Maithem Shaker Obeid (train driver), Ahmed Ibrahim (train controller - guard) and Zeyad Tariq (railway security guard) who were murdered on 27 October 2004 when their train carrying consumer goods was attacked on the railway line between Mosul and Baghdad. On the night of 27/28 October 2004, terrorists attacked the train with mortar fire, setting the train on fire, killing all those working on it and mutilating their bodies.

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The IFTU-affiliated Railworkers' Union also reports that on Saturday 9 April 2005 passenger train services resumed operation between Baghdad, Basra and Mosul following several months' enforced suspension due to the cowardly attacks by terrorists, such as that mentioned above. The IFTU greeted this good news with confidence that the re-opened train services will be of great benefit to the Iraqi people and contribute to the re-building of a democratic and federal Iraq.
2005-03-27 Iraq to revive railway projects An official source at the Iraqi ministry of transportation revealed that the General Railway Company will promote several projects, which were awarded to specialized companies more than 25 years ago, reported the Iraqi Al-Furat newspaper on March 27, 2005. These projects listed are Baghdad - Al-Kut, Al-Imara - Basra, Al-Naseriyya - Basra. The railway plans an Al-Qaim - Dir al-Zur connection with Syria, and Baghdad to Iran through al-Shuayba - al-Mahmara. Other projects in the northern Iraq include Baghdad -Baquba, Irbil - Mosul-Zakho and Kirkuk - Suleimanieh.
2005-03-23 According to Iraqi Al-Ahli newspaper, the General Railway Company in Iraq has announced its investment plan for the current year, which includes the implementations of numerous projects at the cost of $5bn. In a statement issued by the company, Salaam Jabber Salaam, the managing director of the company said that among the projects is the establishment of railroad links between Baghdad and several other provinces. He added that communication systems will be updated by using sophisticated wireless equipment. In his statement, he also conveyed that the plan includes the repair of important bridges and stations.
2004-12-29 Unions condemn terrorist attacks against railway workers Iraqi Federation of Workers Trade Unions condemns insurgent attack on train crew near Basra which led to kidnapping of two and critical injuries to five.
2005-03-06 Railroad to link Kuwait and Iraq. The London-based al-Hayat newspaper reported recently on a project to build a railroad connecting Kuwait with Baghdad and Umm Qaser Port. The project will require $400m of investment, and the Kuwaiti government decided to create an incorporated company to be responsible for implementing this project. The line link the Suweih, Sha'abiyya, and Doha ports in Kuwait with Baghdad, relieving the pressure on the ports of Basra and Umm Qasr.
2005-01-19 Iraqi railway workers strike over attack. Railway workers in the Iraqi city of Basra have walked out on strike to voice their anger over a spate of attacks on transport workers across the country
2004-12-22 Contrack International Inc has become the first major US contractor to pull out of the reconstruction effort in Iraq, citing security concerns The Contrack partnership intended to build new roads, bridges and transportation terminals in Iraq, but only managed to refurbish a handful of train depots, company officials said.
2004-12 Interview with Arkan Jewad Kadhum of the Railway Workers' Union. We have a works committee in our depot of 6 representatives now. The RWU has about 10,000 members across Iraq. ... Saddam used to move his weapons and army by road, which is why he built so many motorways ... We are proud of the Iraqi railways and we have even paid for our own tools to maintain some of the locomotives
2004-12-17 Railway reconstruction to be complete in January. The refurbishment of the rail track connecting Basrah with Umm Qasr port is 78 percent complete. In recent months the U.S. Agency for International Development(USAID) installed 29 planned culverts and repaired ten railway gatehouses along the track. ... According to USAID ... rail remains the least expensive way to move grain, fuel and other bulk cargo around the country.
2004-11-28 Renovation of Iraqi train stations set to begin. Contracts worth around $36 million are to be awarded over the next several months to Iraqi firms to renovate some 76 train stations throughout Iraq, said a project manager. The US Army Corps of Engineers and the Programmes and Contracting Office in Baghdad will issue the contracts.
2004-11-19 Iraq Reconstruction Weekly Update (PDF). Work is continuing on the construction of 72 km of railroad between the southern port of Umm Qasr and Shuaibah junction near Basrah. The project is expected to be complete by January 2005. During the past week, approximately 17 wagons per day delivered railroad ballast to work sites; ballast is the gravel upon which tracks and ties rest. Track has been laid over 15.5 km on the northern branch line, and 21.5 km on the southern branch line. On the line that connects the system to Umm Qasr Port, track laying and surfacing are continuing and 20 ballast wagons have been unloaded for final surfacing in the area. In total, 44.8 of the 72 km have been completed.
2004-11-10 Railway reconstruction vital for economic development. A huge restoration project to get Iraq's neglected railways running again is underway, with work starting on three main rail stations in the northern city of Mosul, Baghdad and the southern city of Basra, the Ministry of Transport (MoT) told IRIN in the capital. Work also began in early November on building 28 small stations in towns across Iraq, the MoT said. "This project will give benefit to millions of Iraqis who depend of this mode of transportation," MoT spokesman, Ahmed Abdul Al-Wahab, told IRIN.
2004-10-15 The last 10 locomotives were send to Iraq by LuganskTeplovoz company.
2004-10-09 Reconstruction Underway to Restore Iraqi Railroads.

Restoration by the Ministry of Transportation and multinational agencies is now underway, starting with the three main railroad stations at Mosul, Baghdad and Basra. Restoration efforts at another 28 of nearly 130 small stations in cities across Iraq will begin in the next two weeks.

An anti-aircraft gun on the roof of the Baghdad station made the depot a target during the 2003 ousting of the former regime. A complete modernization of the main terminal is underway and is expected to take about six months to complete.

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Today officials estimate the railroad is running at about 10 percent of its former capacity. Schedules are still very flexible and are expected to remain so for up to a year or more, according to Iraq's Ministry of Transportation.

"Much of the work we are doing is to upgrade the electrical wiring, air conditioning system, painting and they are thinking of installing fiber optics as a part of the communication system needed to operate a modern day rail way system," Shubat said. "After all, a modern communications system is necessary to conduct safe operations."
2004-10-01 A contract had been signed by Saddam's government for 30 locos. For now there are 15 or 16 were delivered to Iraqi Railways. Due to terrorists danger and war, all personal of LuganskTeplovoz Company have been evacuated from Iraq and for now nobody knows when they will come back to continue teaching Iraq's people to work with those locomotives.
2004-09-20 Contractor User Guide Including an Overview Of The Basra To Umm Qasr Railway Network.
2004-08-14 Baghdad Central Railway Station Building.

Iraq Republic Railway (IRR) today held a ceremony to celebrate the start of the rehabilitation of the Baghdad Central Railway Station, gifted by the PCO/US Mission-Iraq. The building is badly in need of repair from years of looting and neglect. During the rehabilitation, approximately 200 Iraqis will be working to make the facility a comfortable, clean, and safe place for the 200 employees and thousands of railway customers of the railway.

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The renovation, which started on August 12, will restore all building systems including heating, ventilation, air conditioning, plumbing, electrical, and power as well as fencing and lighting. The non-construction portion of the project will include spare parts for the diesel locomotives which come from England [? are these really English, or are they North American?], the Czech Republic, Poland [what are these?], China, Russia, Germany, and France.

Trains will be equipped with VISTAR tracking device which will track all engines at any one time to enhance safety and security. ...
2004-07-25. Fat controller Saddam played games with his golden train. The Sunday Times has an article about Saddam's personal train, and the effects of looting.
Even though Saddam seldom used it, the bed linen on board was changed each day and the restaurant car was stocked with his favourite whisky.
Don't ask me why anyone would walk off with the master cylinder of a Chinese locomotive, but they did said Rick Degman
It's when they fire rocket-propelled grenades that you have a problem a train driver said.

A copy of the text of the article.
2004-07-11. Interview with Subhi Abdullah Mashadani, General Secretary Iraqi Federation of Trade Unions. with a discussion of working conditions for Iraqi railway staff, and trade union news from the country.
2004-07-11. The September 2004 issue of Railway Magazine has a Rick Degman photo on p8 showing Baghdad Central station.
2004-07-11. Continental Railway Journal no.138 Summer 2004 has a brief mention of Iraq. It is a bit confused, and quotes the DEM2700 class as being built in Romania and refurbished in China. They are Chinese, as stated on the works plates and the Dalian Loco works website.
2004-07-04. Greenbrier and Boston Transit announce Iraqi freight car order for Poland. The Iraqi Coalition Provisional Authority has made an award of an order for 240 railroad container flat platforms to be built by The Greenbrier Companies' Polish manufacturing operation, Wagony Swidnica ... The Company has provided freight wagons to the Iraq region in the past, but this order is the first for freight wagons for that region in over 20 years. PDF press release.
2004-06-22. Luhansk-Made Diesel Locomotives Operating in Iraq. ...the first two locomotives arrived at the Falujah railway station, about 70 km from Baghdad, on February 14. Two heavy-duty devices unloaded them: a 120-ton railway crane and a 160-ton truck-mounted one. The other locomotives were unloaded in the Iraqi town of Abu-Ghraid, 15 km from Baghdad.
June 2004. Iraq - Railway Sector (warning - MS Word .doc!). History, current situation, UKTI Export Strategy 2004/2005. Iraq is not one of the priority markets that have been identified by UKTI and the Railway Sector Advisory Group in their strategy document.
2004-06-04. Overview of Key Industry Sectors in Iraq - railways. Iraq has approximately 1,525 miles of rail line, though about half of it is considered to be in poor condition. A lack of signals and poorly maintained tracks cause considerable delays as train travel speeds are significantly reduced. Five main rail lines exist: 1) Baghdad to Basra and Umm Qasr; 2) Baghdad to Mosul and Syria; 3) Baghdad to Al Ramadi to Al Qaim; 4) Al Qaim to Akashat; and 5) Kirkuk to Baiji and Haditha. Along these lines are 107 stations. Many of these stations, as well as maintenance shops and offices, were looted. Service has resumed at a moderate level, with about ten trains running per day. Iraq's rolling stock has deteriorated severely over the past few decades. A lack of maintenance has caused an accumulation of inoperable stock. Of the stock that does function, there are roughly 150 locomotives, 150 passenger cars, and 8,000 flatbeds and cargo cars, a small number of which transport oil ...
2004-05-29. Iraq being plundered. A US newspaper reports that military equipment and oil rig parts are being smuggled out of Iraq in a scale tantamount to looting. ... The [New York Times] said one of its reporters saw "piles of valuable copper and aluminum ingots and bars, large stacks of steel rods and water piper and giant flanges for oil equipment, all in nearly mint condition, as well as chopped-up railroad boxcars...
This seems to be the original article: Valuable building blocks are leaving Iraq as scrap.
2004-05-27. New rail link between Iraq and Arab Gulf states. There is an economic case for linking the country [Iraq] by rail with the oil-rich Gulf states, says a senior railway official. Hilal Abdulridha, head of railway projects, said the line will be economically viable as it will make it easier for commodities to be shuffled to and from Iraq to these countries. Abdulridha said only a stretch of about 15-long kilometer rail needs to be constructed on the Iraqi side to link it with Kuwait. [Let's hope he knows there is no railway in Kuwait for it to join on to!]
2004-05-10. Watch for an article on life with Iraq's railways by Rick Degman in the July issue of Trains magazine.
2004-05-10. The May edition (issue 81) of the French magazine Rail Passion has an illustrated feature on Iraqi railways. Lots of good pictures of the Chinese locos at work, and a description of a trip from Baghdad to Basrah. It is in French, so je ne comprends pas what it all says!
2004-03-10 Iraqi railway police receive 300 sets of body armor. Today, the Iraqi Railway Police (IRP) received 300 sets of body armor from the US military. At a ceremony in downtown Baghdad...
2004-02-14. The Coalition Provisional Authority is recruiting!

RAILWAY TECHNOLOGY ADVISOR ($52,281 - $80,818 Annual)

The Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) is seeking highly skilled and deeply motivated United States citizens to assist in rebuilding the government and industry of Iraq and Afghanistan. Applicants with experience in train control technology and specific knowledge of state-of-the-art technology for railroad communications and signaling are highly desirable. ... Those selected can expect to remain in the overseas area for 6-12 months depending upon the needs of the CPA.

Duties: Works with all departments in the application of new technologies related to the railway. Will have specific responsibility for development, acquisition and implementation of a Communications-Based Train Control (CBTM) system that will largely replace the obsolete and destroyed conventional signal system formerly in use, as well as oversight responsibility for the VHF radio and Fiber Optics projects. Will also oversee creation of a Local-Area Network (LAN) in the General Office and adjoining areas.

They also need a Railroad Staff Coordinator and a Railway Engineering Advisor. Time to polish off your CV? Just remember Living conditions in Baghdad are austere, and there is potential for confinement to a compound. Living conditions in the Iraqi Regions and in Afghanistan vary:
There are photos of a ride to Basra on an IRR train on the Hobo traveler website.
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Once again, Pepsi seems to be popular!
A section of narrow gauge track of about 18-inch gauge is visible in a photo of Jadriya Equestrian Club, which was built for Uday Hussain at Baghdad University. The author of the Brooklyn to Baghdad website (well worth a look in itself) comments I don't know what those tracks are, if he ever had a little railroad that went around or what.
2004-02-02. Iraqi Rail Officials Meet With U.S. Firms at USTDA Briefing. Reconstruction of Iraq's railways was the focus of a U.S. business briefing held today designed to bring Iraqi railways officials together with U.S. suppliers of rail equipment and technology. The event was sponsored by the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) and was held at the agency's headquarters in Arlington, Virginia. The event attracted participation by more than 75 U.S. business representatives. ... Under the Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act (P.L. 108-106), $210 million has been allocated for the reconstruction of the Iraqi railway sector. Export opportunities for U.S. firms exist in the areas of reconstructing and upgrading rail track systems, track maintenance equipment, procuring and refurbishing rolling stock, intermodal and container handling equipment, rail control and signaling equipment, and communications and information technology.
2004-01-31. An interesting web site with some photos taken by Rick Degman, who is working as a railway consultant in Iraq . In addition to several photos of Iraqi passenger stock, one of the photos shows the front of locomotive DEM-2730 after being struck by a rocket-propelled grenade.
2004-01-18. Frontier spirit needed for rebuilding Iraq's railways. ... Two passenger trains leave Baghdad each morning - one for Qusayba and the other for the southern port city of Basra. Some freight has begun to move, including phosphate from a mine in the western town of Akashat. An international service leaves the northern town of Mosul for the Syrian city of Aleppo once a week, but there are no trains between Baghdad and Mosul because of security worries.
USAID Railroads Accomplishments. The rail program, part of the Iraq Infrastructure Reconstruction contract, is reconstructing and improving 72 kilometers of track in Umm Qasr port and between the port and Baghdad to improve freight transport. The track has not been upgraded since the 1950s and causes derailments, accidents, and delays to the existing rail service. Work on railways is an integrated U.S.-Iraqi effort: the Iraqi Railway Administration contributes equipment and labor, while USAID contributes project management, material, and parts. Explosive ordnance disposal at all 53 sites of the rail line project near Shuiaba Junction is complete, and culvert reconstruction work is underway.
2004-01-11. Among other things, looters have been making off with fizzy cola drinks being carried in containers on board trains which have been sabotaged!
2004-01-06. Bechtel Receives Iraqi Reconstruction Contract. Bechtel National Inc. has been selected as contractor for Iraq Infrastructure II, a program to rehabilitate and repair Iraq's infrastructure, an official with the Agency for International Development said here today. Bechtel is teamed with Parsons of Pasadena, Calif., and Horne Engineering Services of Fairfax, Va., for the $1.8 billion contract. It will be implemented over 24 months in partnership with the Coalition Provisional Authority and in cooperation with Iraqi contractors, a senior USAID official told reporters in the Pentagon. This contract basically will follow the contract currently under way, officials said. It will include such major infrastructure sectors as electric power systems, municipal water and sanitation services, road networks and rail systems, selected public buildings, ports and waterways, and airports. "We are honored to have been selected to continue to help rebuild Iraq," said Bechtel National President Tom Hash in a press release. "This award, made after an open, competitive process, demonstrates our customer's confidence in our team's capacity and commitment to quickly begin Iraq Infrastructure II work, while at the same time continuing work under our initial Iraq reconstruction contract."
2004-01-03. Train attacked in Western Iraq. Attackers derailed a train in western Iraq, hitting it with a Rocket-Propelled Grenade, a US military statement said Saturday. "An Iraqi train en route to Babbaniyah was attacked with a Rocket-Propelled Grenade (RPG)," on Wednesday, the 82nd airborne division said. "The round impacted the train and disabled the vehicle," it added. The 82nd airborne division described the attackers as "looters" and said they only stripped the train of its engine batteries.
2004-01-02. Task Force "All American" news release. ... In 1st Brigade, 1st Infantry Division's area, an Iraqi train en route to Habbaniyah was attacked with an RPG. The round impacted the locomotive and disabled the train. Soldiers from 1st Brigade responded to the attack and secured the site. When they arrived, the train was not on fire, but had been abandoned. The train was carrying concrete force protection barriers, which prevented looters from taking anything more than the engine's batteries. The local police took control of the site yesterday evening.

© Andrew Grantham. Last update 2005-06-19. These pages are mostly compiled from secondary sources, so I can't offer any guarantees about accuracy! Please do let me know if you can add more information.

Thanks to Tim Moriarty, Pat Mcdurmon, Jean-Patrick Charrey, Bill Battle, Anon, Nick Lawford, Dan Rohrback, Andrew Baird, Niklas Bygdestam, Ian Hughes, Gordon Mott, Leon Sparx, Phil Wormald, Rick Degman, Alexander Sharaev, Chris Capewell, Christopher Morris, Jean-Patrick Charrey, Alex Loggins, Marek Graff, Mark Hemphill and many others for news and links.