Tehran Metro Company, the executive entity for the capital’s subway network, is in the red, owing the local banking system 370 trillion rials ($1.33 billion), while still needing funds to overhaul wagons and complete unfinished lines.
According to Mojtana Shafiei, the deputy head of Transportation and Traffic Department at Tehran Municipality, Tehran Metro’s bad debts, which have built up from years of financial crisis, make it difficult for receiving more loans, IRNA reported.
Speaking during the most recent meeting of Tehran City Council, Shafiei said the subway network is one of the most prominent means of providing urban mobility services to the public.
“The company’s debt accumulation to the banks can seriously disrupt its operations,” he added.
The official elaborated on fiscal deficiencies in the way of subway development and said the completion of under-construction subway lines requires an estimated 350 trillion rials ($1.26 billion).
Stretching over 253 kilometers across the capital, Tehran Metro constitutes seven lines, with lines 6 and 7 still under construction.
Line 6 will be the longest route in the subway network, stretching over 38 km with 27 stations upon completion. It connects Shahr-e Rey in southeast Tehran to the Sulaqan rural district in the northwest.
The 27-km-long Line 7, which connects the northwest to southeastern parts of Tehran, will have 25 stations after completion.
Shafiei added that the expansion of Line 1 to Eslamshahr and Parand, satellite cities in the southwest of the capital, requires another 360 trillion rials ($1.29 billion).
Line 1 runs north-south from Tajrish Square to Kahrizak, and is 36.6 km long. Officially launched in 2001, the line now provides mobility services to 32 stations.
The official said the newly-designed lines 8-11 would require 2.01 quadrillion rials ($7.25 billion) for completion.
The new lines have been designed to encompass areas not covered by the metro network so far.
Line 8 will stretch over 37 km starting from the southeast, going around the city center in a curve and turning back to the northeast with a total of 35 stations.
When complete, Line 9 will be 46 km long with 39 stations, covering a larger area starting from the west at Line 5's Chitgar Station. It then travels up north and goes toward the east, continues southward and ends at Dolatabad Station on Line 6.
Line 10 is the uppermost path, starting from Vardavard Station on Line 5. It travels 41 kilometers across the northern part of the city with 34 stations, reaching northeast to Qanat-e Kosar.
Line 11 will stretch over 26 kilometers, starting from Chitgar Station on Line 5, linking the west to the southeastern flank of Tehran with 17 stations.
In addition, two express lines have also been proposed as a peripheral transport facility. One of the lines is to connect Sadeqiyeh Station on Line 5 to the capital's southern neighborhood Varamin. The other express line is set to link Pardis in the northeast to Parand in the southwest of Tehran Province.
The two express lines, according to Shafiei, would need 700 trillion rials ($2.52 billion) for construction.
The official said the government, as a major investor in Tehran Metro development, has reduced its contribution to almost zero in the past few years.
He urged the authorities and urban managers to find alternative fiscal sources for the deprived system, or it will face serious problems.
Expansion Plans
Despite talks of budget deficit, Tehran Metro Company is planning to add at least eight more stations by the end of the current Iranian year (March 2022), the head of Tehran Metro Company said.
Ali Emam added that the new stations would come on stream in lines 3, 6 and 7.
“We are planning to complete tunneling and railroad infrastructure in the southern flank of Line 6, which runs 7.5 kilometers up to Shah Abdolazim Shrine Station,” he said.
The official noted that based on the line’s extension design, the path will then link up with Shahr-e Rey Station to the south of Line 1.
“The other project to become operational by August is the northern extension of Line 3. The line is planned to continue its path toward the west, making a loop with Line 1 at Tajrish Station. Besides the connection, several inactive stations in the line will also be completed,” he said.
Tehran Metro’s Line 3, which extends over 38 km from Shahrak-e Qaem in the northeast to Azadegan in the southwest, is a vital route as it crosses busy parts of the capital and helps alleviate traffic problems. Once fully operational, the line will have 26 stations.
In addition to the completion of new stations, Emam added that five operating stations will open second entrances to ease public access.
The official said Tehran Metro has also placed the completion of Line 7 on the current year’s agenda.
According to Emam, the construction of 5 kilometers of the northwestern flank of Line 7, connecting two stations: Islamic Azad University Science and Research Branch and North Jannatabad, and a subway terminal in the far north will start soon.
The subway terminal will help reduce the headway, ease parking problems and help renovate the wagons.
Line 7 was partially opened in June 2017 by Tehran's former mayor, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, during his 2017 presidential election campaign.
The line’s premature launch was strongly criticized by public transport experts and urban planners, because it disregarded safety rules and protocols.
Officials now say all safety standards have been observed.
At present, Tehran Metro boasts 130 operating stations.
Tehran Metro’s Report Sheet
According to Tehran Municipality’s recent report, Tehran Metro Company has completed 40 kilometers of subway tunnels, built 14 new station entrances and five power stations, installed 62 elevators, 280 escalators and 78 ventilation systems, and added 133 subway cars to the network since 2017 when the former president, Hassan Rouhani, began his second tenure.
The report states that three sources have contributed 67 trillion rials ($239 million) to Tehran Metro’s construction since November 2017. The first is the government's budget allocation of 2.46 trillion rials ($8.7 million).
Tehran Municipality, which has invested 43.8 trillion rials ($156 million) in the subway over the last four years, is the company's next financial source.
According to the report, 33.6 trillion rials ($120 million) of the authorized funds were spent on the subway project, with the rest being used to cover the company's debts and other expenses.
The issuance of participatory bonds has also brought in 20.8 trillion rials ($74.2 million) for Tehran’s subway.
The harsh US sanctions against Iran, which have been reimposed since the summer of 2018, and the growing prices of imported goods should be considered when comparing achievements and budget expenditures.
