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RR RUEHBC RUEHDA RUEHDE RUEHIHL RUEHKUK
DE RUEHGB #0048/01 0070858
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 070858Z JAN 08 ZDK
FM AMEMBASSY BAGHDAD
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 5130
INFO RUCNRAQ/IRAQ COLLECTIVE
RULSDMK/DEPT OF TRANSPORTATION WASHDC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BAGHDAD 000048 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ECON ELTN IZ
SUBJECT: PASSENGER RAIL'S RETURN HINTS AT CHALLENGES AND 
OPPORTUNITIES 
 
REF: 2007 BAGHDAD 2724 
 
¶1. (U) SUMMARY: On December 16 the Iraqi Republic Railway 
(IRR) renewed scheduled passenger service between Baghdad and 
Basrah for the first time since before the 2003 invasion. 
The first week of service was marred by two attacks--one 
suicide bomb and one IED--and a train-automobile collision 
under arguably suspicious circumstances.  Security challenges 
notwithstanding, the Office of the Transportation Attach 
(OTA) continues to work closely with the IRR and the Ministry 
of Transportation (MoT) to help them maximize the railway's 
commercial potential through infrastructure improvements, 
training, technical assistance, and capacity development.  In 
2008 several USG-funded, OTA-managed projects should enhance 
the railway's capacity to serve both Iraqi and Coalition 
customers.  The GOI must, however, invest more in the system 
and its security to solidify its role as an economic activity 
enabling transportation infrastructure.  END SUMMARY. 
 
---------------------- 
PASSENGER RAIL RETURNS 
---------------------- 
 
¶2. (U) On December 16 the IRR renewed scheduled passenger 
service between Baghdad and Basrah for the first time since 
before the 2003 invasion.  The IRR now offers two trains per 
day, seven days per week, on the 552 kilometer (KM) route: a 
09:00 Baghdad to Basrah arriving in the evening and a 21:00 
Basrah to Baghdad arriving in the morning.  The trains 
average 40 KMs per hour and, passengers depending, stop at 
approximately 30 stations.  Each train set consists of a 
diesel locomotive, a power car, a sleeper, and three coaches; 
the sleeper holds a maximum of 80 passengers, and each coach 
holds 70.  Iraqis have shown interest in the service so far, 
drawn in part by the low fares.  A coach ticket sells for 
2400 Iraqi Dinar (ID) or approximately USD 2.  The sleepers 
have sold out completely, and the coaches have been 
approximately 60 percent full. 
 
---------------------------------- 
EXTREMISTS CHALLENGE RAIL SECURITY 
---------------------------------- 
 
¶3. (U) Scheduled passenger rail presents an easier target for 
extremists than the more irregular cargo service.  Extremists 
exploited this vulnerability at least twice during the first 
week of passenger service.  On December 19, a female suicide 
bomber detonated her charge outside a coach car at a station 
roughly 50 KMs south of Baghdad.  The explosion killed the 
attacker and derailed the car.  The IRR reported no other 
injuries.  On December 21, an IED prematurely detonated north 
of Latifiyah, killing the bomber and damaging the nearby 
track.  The explosion temporarily disrupted service, but 
injured nobody and damaged no other IRR equipment or 
facilities.  In addition to these attacks, on December 23 the 
southbound train collided with a minivan at a known rail 
crossing near Hillah.  The nature of the incident--suspicious 
or merely unfortunate--is still a matter of debate. (NOTE: 
The vehicle's driver had the wherewithal to flee the scene 
before impact, leaving the eleven remaining occupants of the 
van to die.  END NOTE.)  No injuries were reported on the 
train. 
 
--------------------------------------------- -------- 
IRR AND OTA WORKING TO UNLOCK THE NETWORK'S POTENTIAL 
--------------------------------------------- -------- 
 
¶4. (U) OTA continues to work closely with the IRR and the MoT 
to maximize the railway's commercial potential through 
infrastructure improvements, training, technical assistance 
and capacity development.  OTA's overarching goal is to help 
the IRR formulate a strategic vision for the network and 
adopt and implement a business model suited to that vision. 
Passenger rail is unlikely to be a significant revenue 
generator for the IRR with fares so inexpensive, but the 
state-run company's cargo service has greater potential. 
Presently the IRR runs an average of seven cargo trains per 
day.  Each cargo train consists of nine container cars, and 
USD 400 is a common tariff per container.  Current payloads 
include supplies for Iraqi and Coalition forces, heavy fuel 
oil for power plants, and bulk commodities from the Port of 
Umm Qasr. 
 
¶5. (U) Several USG-funded, OTA-managed projects should help 
the IRR serve its customers in 2008.  Two related 
projects--the Communications Based Train Control System 
(CBTC) and the Digital Microwave Radio Communications Network 
(DMRCN)--should be operational by mid-year.  The CBTC is a 
USD 14 million project that will modernize the IRR's 
antiquated system for directing train traffic, allowing 
technicians to manage the rail system from the Dispatching 
 
BAGHDAD 00000048  002 OF 002 
 
 
Department based in the Baghdad station.  The USD 38 million 
DMRCN is the CBTC's communications medium, comprised of 33 
microwave telecommunications towers positioned along the 
train routes.  The IRR has selected eleven technicians to be 
trained on the CBTC equipment in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, in the 
first quarter of 2008.  The technology and its Iraqi 
operators should improve both efficiency and safety of the 
railway network. 
 
¶6. (U) But fundamental challenges remain.  The light-weight 
track that runs from Basrah to Baghdad to Mosul needs 
replacing: it is over 60 years old and has been neglected 
since the Iran-Iraq war.  In addition, the IRR complains that 
the Rail Police, which formerly reported to the IRR itself 
but now falls under the Ministry of the Interior, are 
inexperienced and ineffective.  IRR employees report that 
militias and criminals associated with trucking cartels 
continue to threaten them. 
 
¶7. (U) COMMENT: The December attacks on the passenger rail 
service highlight the difficulty of securing the railway. 
OTA will continue to engage the MoT and the IRR to assist 
them in strategic planning, identifying priorities, 
developing a sound business model, and executing contracts to 
achieve their goals.  But greater MoT investment in railway 
security and new track will be essential to maintain and 
expand its passenger and cargo services.  Continued neglect 
of the system will leave underutilized the railway's latent 
potential to move people and goods into, out of, and through 
Iraq. 
CROCKER