In its proposed budget bill for the upcoming year, the administration has earmarked only about 5 trillion rials ($185 million) for improving transportation infrastructure and providing the required machineries for the maintenance of the national road network, Minister of Roads and Urban Development, Abbas Akhoundi, said on Tuesday. Speaking in the first conference on ‘smart transportation systems’, the official regretted that 40 percent of the arterial roads – about 48 thousand kilometers – are in poor condition, while 75 percent of transportation across the country is carried out via these routes. “About 70 trillion rials ($2.5 billion) is required annually to maintain the roadways,” he said.
