TEHRAN (Iran News) –  Iranian Transport and Urban Development Ministry data shows that more than 1,000 kilometers (km) have been added to the country’s transit routes over the past eight years, IRNA reported.

As reported, the total length of the country’s transit routes reached 25,329 km at the end of the previous Iranian calendar year 1399 (March 20) from the 24,033 km eight years ago.

The mentioned data also indicates that back in the Iranian calendar year 1392 (ended in March 2014) the total length of the country’s freeways stood at 2,203 km, while at the end of the previous Iranian calendar year the figure reached about 2,726 km.

Regarding the main roads in the country, the total length of the said roads was 21,628 km in 1392 which increased to about 25,193 km at the end of the previous year.

In 1392, there was about 5,534 km of rural asphalt roads, while the figure reached 135,540 km at the end of 1399.

Back in May, Deputy Transport and Urban Development Minister Kheirollah Khademi said 440 km of freeways and 1,200 km of highways will be added to the country’s road network by the end of the current Iranian calendar year (March 2022).

Khademi noted that the ministry prioritized the completion of nine major freeway projects which would have the biggest impact on the country’s transportation and transit operations over the past two years and these projects have had average progress of more than 70 percent so far.

“Two of the mentioned projects were put into operation in the previous year and 221 kilometers of freeways were completed across the country,” he said.

Khademi, who is also the managing director of Iran’s Construction and Development of Transportation Infrastructures Company (CDTIC), stressed that the completion of 221 km of freeways in the previous year was achieved despite the fact that the annual freeway construction in the country has been 80 km.

As for the country’s highways development, the official said the completion of 2,000 km of highways has also been put on the agenda, of which last year 170 km was completed.

“Most of the highways that are going to be inaugurated this year are part of the East-West and North-South corridors, which will be a big step towards the development of freight, transit, and passenger transportation in the country,” he noted.