High-Speed Train Services Resume in Iran

The resumption comes as CEO of the company, Mohammad Rajabi, announced last week that RAJA had stopped selling tickets for high-speed trains as of Jan. 5 due to heavy expenses.

ILNA, however, did not mention whether RAJA’s financial problems have been resolved or not.

Rajabi also warned that suburban trains were next in line to stop services if the government does not lend financial support, according to Financial Tribune.

“We are incapable of operating these trains with the current ticket fares and have communicated our concerns to the government and the Plan and Budget Organization on many occasions,” Mehr News Agency quoted him as saying.

RAJA was established in November 1996 as an arm of the Islamic Republic of Iran Railways for improving the quality and quantity of railroad passenger services. It was transferred to the Tourism Holding of Social Security Organization (better known by its Persian acronym HEGTA) in March 2010 as part of IRIR’s outstanding debt to the organization.