Syrian Arab Republic Comprehensive Transport Study. Volume III: Railways

摘要

Syria has embarked upon an ambitious expansion of its rail system which, by 1985, will adequately meet national rail transport demand through the year 2000. The study analyzes both of Syria's rail lines, the Chemin-de-fer Syrien (CFS) and the Chemin-de-fer Hijaz (CFH). Passenger tariffs are presently well below the marginal cost of running the CFS efficiently and should be raised to meet operating costs. The CFH is Syria's narrow gauge rail network which in the past depended for its livelihood on the transport of passengers and freight from east to west. Despite dieselization and added rolling stock, CFH is generally not competitive with other forms of overland traffic and a closure of its Damascus-Dera'a line appears inevitable. More importantly, Syria is conducting a feasibility study to determine the utility of replacing CFH with a standard gauge line.