Chemins de fer Syriens is the national railway operator for the state of Syria.
The first railway in Syria opened when the country was part of the Ottoman Empire, with the 1050mm gauge line from Damascus to the port city of Beirut in present day Lebanon opened in 1895. The famous Hejaz railway opened in 1908 between Damascus and Medina in present day Saudi Arabia also used 1050mm gauge. Railways after this point were built to 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in).[1]
Today, the standard gauge network is operated by Syrian Railways, with an international connection with Turkey. The link with Iraq, severed in the war of 2003, was restored for a time but subsequently closed again; it is scheduled to reopen in June 2009.[2] In 2008 it was proposed to open a joint rolling stock factory with Turkish State Railways at Aleppo[3]
The only remaining section of narrow gauge line, running from a point on the outskirts of Damascus into Jordan, is operated by Jordan Hejaz Railways.
On 22 April 2005 Syria ratified the Agreement on International Railways in the Arab Mashriq, which provides for the implementation of a variety of north-south and east-west links between the states of the region, including the restoration of direct rail links between Syria, Lebanon and Iraq.
total:
2,750 km
standard gauge:
2,423 km 1.435-m gauge
narrow gauge:
327 km 1.050-m gauge (2000)
Modernisation of the Syrian rail network has been identified as a priority by the government. In 2003 it planned to invest EUR9 billion in the system, with EUR12 billion annually to be spent in succeeding years. The longer term development of the network up to 2020 has been the subject of studies undertaken with the help of the Japanese consultancy, Jaika. Proposals include the construction of new lines for speeds of up to 250 km/h to Iraq, Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey. Restructuring of CFS is foreseen, with the state assuming responsibility for infrastructure and railway operations placed in the hands of separate independent business units.[4]