Turkmenistan and Iran plan to construct two new railway lines at the Sarakhs border crossing to increase the volume of rail transport, according to Jabbaraali Zakeri, head of the Islamic Republic of Iran Railways, following a meeting with Turkmenistan’s Minister of Railways, Mammet Akmammedov.

The agreement was reached during bilateral talks held in Turkmenbashi on the sidelines of the Third United Nations Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries, Iran’s Ministry of Roads and Urban Development reported on Tuesday.

According to Zakeri, the project envisions the construction of both a standard-gauge and a broad-gauge track connecting the Sarakhs stations on each side of the border. He emphasized the importance of expanding railway routes to strengthen transport connectivity between the two countries and noted that expert-level meetings between the respective railway administrations will be held to facilitate the project.

The Sarakhs border crossing is a key transit hub linking Iran, Central Asia, and other regions, and forms part of the International North–South Transport Corridor.