The transport system of Iraq developed mainly in the middle of the 20th century. Due to a number of large-scale wars, the general state of communications within the country has noticeably worsened.
Content
Railways
The total length of railways in Iraq is 2,272 kilometers, all of them have a standard gauge of 1,435 mm. Transport links are supported with the following states:
- Saudi Arabia
- Syria
- Turkey - through Syria
- Iran - two lines:
- Basra - Khorramshahr (under construction)
- Diyala province - Kermanshah (project)
- Jordan - partially built.
There is an active construction of the Baghdad Metro .
Roads
Total length: 45,550 kilometers.
- Paved 38,400 kilometers. (1996)
Air Transport
There are 113 airports in Iraq, including 80 paved airstrips (1999). The largest of them:
- Baghdad International Airport ,
- Basra International Airport ,
- Najaf International Airport ,
- Mosul International Airport ,
- Erbil International Airport .
Sea transport
The total length of the waterways is 1 015 kilometers. However, most of them are obsolete. So, in 1991, the Shatt al-Basra canal was closed, designed for small vessels. In the Shatt al-Arab canal, only 130 kilometers of length are suitable for shipping. There are also separate transport sections along the Euphrates and Tigris rivers .
In total, Iraq owns 32 vessels with a tonnage of more than 1000 register tons . Including 14 cargo ships, 1 passenger, 1 mixed type, 13 oil tankers , 1 refrigerator, 2 rollers (1999).
Ports: Basra - the main port of the country, Umm Qasr, Havr al-Zubair, Al-Fao (draft) [1] .
Pipeline transportation
- Pipelines for crude oil: 4,350 kilometers.
- Pipelines for petroleum products: 725 kilometers.
- Gas pipelines: 1 360 kilometers.