IRR

Taji train moves wagons to Baghdad

Posted on by Andrew Grantham

IRR loco

A press release from DVIDs, the US military’s Digital Video & Imagery Distribution System. Obviously this may not by a totally unbiased source of good news, but it’s still interesting.

For some reason they refer to Iraqi National Railways, rather than Iraqi Republic Railways.

Taji Train Moves Cars to Baghdad

By Staff Sgt. Bryant Maude
1st Sustainment Brigade
24 March 2008

CAMP TAJI, Iraq – The day started off with a stuck switch that needed to be repaired before Mustapha, the conductor for the Iraqi National Railways, could move his Chinese built diesel-electric train down the tracks to collect the 54 flat cars destined for Bagdad’s central rail yard, March 20.

IRR train shunting

“We’re removing 54 old, defunct train cars out of the Taji rail yard in an effort to clear up space for future rail moves,” stated Maj. Ira Baldwin, a Laurinburg, N.C., native and mobility chief for the 1st Sustainment Brigade.

The Taji rail spur project started weeks ago with the arrival of the first train since 2004 and continued with a crew of Iraqi National Railway workers cleaning tracks and repairing switches. Eventually this spur will be used by both coalition forces and the Iraqi army as a place to move heavy cargo in and out of the Central Receiving and Shipping Point (CRSP) and the Taji National Depot respectively.

Man looking at train

“This proof of purpose does several things,” states Baldwin. “It serves as a test bed for the U.S. Army to conduct rail operations in Iraq, and builds confidence in the Iraqi National Railway. Eventually, having a viable rail system, the Iraqi army will have a means by which they can transport equipment, provide good jobs for Iraqi workers, and aid in the overall growth of the Iraqi economy.”

This optimistic approach was not just evident in the Soldiers, but the conductor and his crew as well.

Train in Iraq
“Very pleased with the way the railroad has returned,” said Mustapha.

A twenty-seven year veteran of the rail business, Mustapha got his start as a result of watching friends who encouraged him to become a driver. Now he operates a number of aging trains that were purchased years ago from places like Spain, Turkey, China, and Germany.

“I hope to get newer equipment and that the tracks will be improved and the depreciation to the equipment will slow down,” said Mustapha. “God willing it will be in the service of the Iraqi forces and everyone knows how efficient they are at running things.”

Tameem railway station rehab

Posted on by Andrew Grantham

A US Army Corps of Engineers press release from August 2006, with photographs of a locomotive depot and a large marshalling yard.

The locomotive is a Thyssen-Henschel/EMD class DEM2500.

Tameem Railway Station Rehab – An Economic Vision for the Future of Kirkuk

By Polli Barnes Keller
Gulf Region North
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

Kirkuk, Iraq- Neglected and oppressed during the Saddam era, citizens of Kirkuk are rising to rebuild their city and their country’s economy. Appropriate thereto, Iraq’s oil plays an active role stimulating and directing that economy. With operations back on-line in the local oil fields, other infrastructure preparation for further economic growth is underway.

The rehabilitation of the Tameem Railway Station is one illustration of economic support in progress. The reconstruction and rehabilitation of this facility is part of a vision for the future of the country through the development of basic services and strategic infrastructure. An operating rail system will assist in generating an economic recovery within the region.

Major Craig Guth, P.E. (Professional Engineer), the Kirkuk Provincial Reconstruction Team Engineer of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers spoke of the railway, “Rebuilding the rail industry is important to the Iraqi economy. After years of neglect of the highways and road network, the construction boom we are seeing today in Kirkuk and the need to transport fuel and oil products by road is straining the transportation system. Rail is a much more efficient alternative and is necessary for Kirkuk’s continued future development.”

Improving the station’s ability to handle increasing freight storages will help fulfill the vision of Iraq’s future in laying the foundation for a growth economy. Added freight capacity and the potential for the long term employment of Iraqis are examples of this vision coming to realization.

Guth met with the Directorate General for the railroad, Mr. Shakir Mahoud, to discuss the new railway station. Mahoud explained that during Saddam’s era there was a plan to expand and develop the railroads, but was never ratified. A map and design for connecting the cities of Sulaymaniya, Erbil, Dahuk and Mosul to the railroad network exist, however the task is not easy due to the security situation in the region.

The intent is to rebuild the station to improve efficiency and safety. In the past, operational readiness and safety were aggravated by the lack of pre-war maintenance as well as the post-war looting and damage that led to its disrepair.

Joe Domingo, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, project engineer said “This station previously was an asset to the Kirkuk Province for importing and exporting commodities, transporting postal cargo service, oil, gas, etc between Northern and Southern Iraq.” Currently, limited service is provided between the Kirkuk and Mosul areas.

Renovations to this facility included the construction of many outer buildings as well as rehabilitation to the existing structures. Also constructed was a direct link to the high voltage grid and installation of the lower floor of the Kirkuk Station.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers monitored all quality control activities to ensure the requirements of the contract were followed and construction met all the correct quality standards.

Not only is Kirkuk one of the oldest cities in Iraq, but it is at the center of the Iraqi petroleum industry. It holds great importance both historically as well as economically. By setting the infrastructure in place, Iraq is opening itself to economic prosperity. Prosperity will follow regulated commerce, the security of borders and infrastructure, and openness to legitimate trading partners and neighboring countries.

Source: US Army Corps of Engineers press release.

DEM2717 south of Baghdad

Posted on by Andrew Grantham

Chris Curtis served in Iraq with the US infantry, and has sent me this photo of a short IRR train hauled by loco DEM2717 which he took “just south of Baghdad” in 2005.

DEM 2717 south of Baghdad© Chris Curtis

The 50 locos in the DEM2700 class were built by Dalian Loco in China, and delivered to Iraqi Republic Railways from 2002.

More pics

The UK’s Defence Image database has a few pictures of railways in Iraq dated 26/11/03, which can be found if you search for railway. I can’t figure out if the copyright rules let me put them here or not, but try these links

  • http://tinyurl.com/2ctvay Members of A Company, 1st Battalion The Royal Scots. On foot patrol in Az-Zubayr south of Basra.
  • http://tinyurl.com/2c824p A member of A Company, 1st Battalion The Royal Scots with Iraqi children, on foot patrol in Az-Zubayr south of Basra crosses rail tracks.
  • http://tinyurl.com/2efxbb A child sits on a rusting railway carriage [actually a freight wagon] as he watches members of A Company, 1st Battalion The Royal Scots on foot patrol Az-Zubayr south of Basra.

Defending the railroads

Posted on by Andrew Grantham

The Daily Telegraph of October 12 2007 has an article by Damien McElroy entitled “Iraq insurgency: Defending the railroads”.

McElroy reports from al-Qaim,saying

The unending suspension of Iraq’s national railway stands as a stark symbol of the failure to rebuild the nation.

Getting the network operating is not one of Washington’s 18 benchmarks for progress in Iraq but the resumption of scheduled services along thousands of miles of track would mark a momentous breakthrough four years after the war to depose Saddam Hussein.

…

Two Iraq Republic Railway inspectors at the remote desert railhead in al-Qaim have defied terrorist threats and criminal gangs to loyally keep the railway open on limited local runs.

Freight trains carrying supplies for a phosphorous plant are the only service offered at al-Qaim, which is also the main American base.

There are also some good photos.

Communications-Based Train-Control

Posted on by Andrew Grantham

Good news from Mark W Hemphill: “Work has commenced on the IRR’s Communications-Based Train-Control system, prime contractor Mafeks LLC, subcontractor Wabtec Railway Electronics. When commissioned in 2006, this system will provide system-wide computer-assisted dispatching from Baghdad, using Direct Traffic Control-Manual Block System authorities with reactive enforcement of authority excursions and speed restrictions. Train movement authorities will be transmitted by redundant paths consisting of radio links to repeaters supported by microwave and fiber-optic backbones, and Iridium satellite, and will be digitally displayed on screens in each locomotive cab. The dispatching consoles show the system graphically and are point-and-click operated. It’s expected that the system will double the current traffic capacity of the IRR and provide a very high level of safety. It will support the possible future installation of traditional line-side signaling, cab signaling, floating-block signaling, or local manual interlockings. System architecture has been developed and currently the system software is being written.”

“I’ve examined the preliminary engineering drawings for the Iraq-Iran link between Basra and Khorramshar. The IRR is very excited by this link, and wants to complete it as soon as possible. To my knowledge, construction has not commenced. The most difficult item is a high-level bridge over the Shatt-Al-Arab, estimated at $70 million.”