Regional transport in Central Asian countries (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan) is largely based on rail.
The potential short-term benefits resulting from the increased private sector involvement in railway transport include a significant efficiency in case the private managers decide to mobilise private investments, especially for the purchase of rolling stock and equipments or facilities for their maintenance. Much of the railway industry in Central Asian countries is, however, a natural monopoly with significant economies of scale and high entry costs on the transport market, particularly for infrastructure. Under these circumstances competition between railway operators is unlikely, although the competition could be stimulated if a regulatory framework is put in place to ensure fair access to infrastructure. This makes it difficult to increase private sector involvement.
For the freight transport, the Central Asian countries have railway networks mostly built during the Soviet Union and for its benefit. Currently, these countries could benefit from cross-border cooperation or the establishment of common tariff policies for freight transit. Through the new projects implemented, such as Tajikistan – Afghanistan – Turkmenistan (TAT) and Northern – Southern Corridor (Kazakhstan – Turkmenistan – Iran) we must consider the advantages of the networks in these states for freight transit on the Europe – Asia direction and back.
These states benefit from a series of important routes for the inter-regional transit. A good example is the railway between Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan with links to the Kyrgyz Republic and Tajikistan which provides important connections between much of Central Asia and seaports on the Persian Gulf, the Mediterranean Sea, the Black Sea and a transit potential between East Asia (via the Druzhba border post) and Central and Southern Europe. The railways connecting the main industrial centres in northern Kazakhstan with the northern border with Russia provide the main connections between northern Kazakhstan, European Russia and Europe and transit services between East Asia (via Druzhba) and Northern and Central Europe along the northern Trans-Asian railway (TAR).
Then, another example mentioned in an UNESCAP analysis is the Kazak railway via Kzyl-Orda and Aralsk which has traditionally provided the main connection between Uzbekistan and the Kyrgyz Republic and between European Russia and Northern Europe and now provides the link to the Caspian Sea port of Akta.
Uzbekistan may also be in the attention of the strategies establishing optimal variants for the freight transit on the Eurasian platform.
Thus, the railway in Uzbekistan via Navoi and Nukus and then through Makat in Kazakhstan provides a link between southern Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, and Tajikistan to western Siberia and eastern Iran and Afghanistan. It also provides an alternative east-west link to the Kzyl-Orda-Aralsk route via Aktau.
Recently, the Turkmen Vice-President for Transportation Affairs Saltyk Saltykow announced the completion of the works on the Turkmen share of the North-South corridor.
“The 700-kilometer Turkmen part of the project is complete and the last operations for its launch are underway now”, Saltykow said.
Moreover, the Turkmen President, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, underlined the fact that his country is actively involved in the development of infrastructure projects for the purpose of developing international transport systems.
Reducing freight transit times is another factor underlying the development of these railway routes. The Central Asian railway network has the potential to attract traffic from China to the Middle East and Central Europe currently carried out exclusively on maritime routes intended for container transport and suffering from long and arduous journeys.
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