South Caucasus railway plans to invest a total of RUB 1.2bn in the Armenian railroad facilities, with RUB 1bn to be invested in the infrastructure, Deputy Director General Marat Khakov told a press conference.

He said that the company plans to invest RUB 600m in the track facilities annually during the following three years. A total of RUB 10m will be invested in the design and survey works. A technical diagnostics center will be opened at the Masis station before next May. The previously done work allowed the average speed to be increased by 4.2 kmh.

Over 27,000 passengers were served by the Yerevan-Batumi train – an increase of 40% as compared with the corresponding period last year. Inland passenger traffic reached 465,000 – an increase of 40%. Khakov said that two overhauled locomotives will replenish the company’s locomotive fleet (six locomotives) this October. Railway communication between Gyumri and Vanadzor will be resumed in a few months.

Khakov alsp addressed the three railway accidents at the Masis and Noragavit stations, as well as at the Tumanyan-Shaghali crossing. In the first two cases, it was “a human factor.” As regards the third case, Khakov said that Tumanyan-Shaghali is the most difficult section that needs repairing. The South Caucasus Railway Company has repaired a 5-km-long section and plans to repair a 10-km-long section before the end of this year. The company replaced 60,000 sleepers and plans to replace 40,000 more.