As the Deputy Minister of Roads and Urban Development in the twelfth government and former member of the Supreme Council of National Aviation, I believe that we can benefit from foreign airlines in the domestic aviation network. He admits that we are “facing the problem of obsolescence in the transportation industry” but we do not have enough money to rebuild our fleet. Due to this problem of obsolescence in the transportation fleet, the monthly magazine “Peace Line” has gone to Mehrdad Taghizadeh to ask him questions about the chaotic situation of transportation in Iran and to hear his answers as someone who has been active in this field for years as a senior manager.

Mr. Taghizadeh Bahjati, a graduate of industrial engineering from Sharif University of Technology, has held managerial positions such as Deputy of Transportation and Traffic at Tehran Municipality, Deputy of Railways of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and CEO of Raja Passenger Trains Company. This experienced manager, in response to a question about fuel prices and public transportation, says that first, standard and quality public transportation systems should be provided to the people, and then fuel prices can be increased. Mehrdad Taghizadeh raises this issue: “Creating facilities for public transportation and creating problems for personal vehicles.”

You can read the detailed conversation of the monthly “Peace Line” with Mehrdad Taghizadeh below:

In October of this year, news of the decision made by the Supreme Economic Council to replace 85,000 old trucks, buses, and minibuses was released. Can we hope that with this renovation in the country’s transportation, some of the problems related to air pollution will be solved?

Renovation of old vehicles is one of the methods that helps to solve the problem of air pollution, but the entire issue of air pollution is not related to this problem. To solve the problem of air pollution, dozens of actions need to be taken and renovation of old vehicles is one of them. It is also important that what is approved is implemented; meaning that there should be an executable mechanism for it. We have had similar resolutions for several years. Each new vehicle, for example a new truck, should replace several old ones. The problem is that such resolutions are not implemented in practice to be effective solutions.

In your opinion, why are these types of decisions not being implemented? Is the problem due to a lack of allocated resources or the execution method?

As far as I know, the problem is related to the lobby of car manufacturers. Car manufacturers prefer to receive cash and deliver the car, and not have the hassle of receiving and scrapping old vehicles. In the past, if such decisions were not implemented, it was because car manufacturers did not allow it to be implemented.

تجهیزات و چه در زمینه زیرساخت‌ها، وجود دارد

Do you accept that we are facing a serious problem of obsolescence in the transportation industry in Iran? The issue of 50% of the country’s airplanes being outdated is being discussed. On the other hand, there are also problems in the rail fleet, both in terms of equipment and infrastructure.“سلام دنیا”

“Hello world”

We have rails and trains. What should we do in this situation?

Yes, we are facing the problem of aging in the transportation industry. Different actions need to be taken in different sectors. For example, the aviation sector cannot be compared to the issue of buses, subways, and the like.

Regarding city and intercity buses, as they are mostly operated by the private sector, it is sufficient to design appropriate economic formulas so that the private sector can benefit from the necessary income in the long run. When we talk about income in this area, we do not only mean ticket sales, but also advertising inside and outside the buses and at the stations. Some of the larger stations can even be made available to these private companies. What I mean is that an attractive package must be provided for the private sector. However, these packages are usually not designed to be attractive for the private sector, they only want to give them the ticket money, which does not generate enough income to create enthusiasm for investment. The government and municipalities do not have enough money to renovate intercity or city buses. Therefore, they must rely on the private sector.

Currently, in the railway sector, all freight and passenger trains – except for locomotives – belong to the private sector. Thirty percent of the locomotives also belong to the private sector, and the remaining seventy percent belongs to the state-owned railway company. In my opinion, that seventy percent should also be handed over to the private sector. If there is good interaction with the private sector and the situation is such that it remains profitable for them, the renovation of the trains will also benefit them. Because these private companies make payments to the railway. Usually, in an economic package that is designed, the numbers should be adjusted in a way that is profitable for the investor and the private sector. Right now, the state-owned railway company is more inclined to have access rights and receive the highest profit. This causes a decline in quality. Therefore, this can also be done in the railway sector.

Does it mean that in your opinion, the main problem is excessive government intervention in this area?

Yes. The monopoly is excessive. They are usually not very interested in allowing the private sector to grow.

What do you know specifically about the reason for it in the rail sector?

This issue relates to the thoughts of railway managers at different levels. I myself was the CEO of the passenger train company, Raja. At that time, we were able to privatize the company to the extent possible. At that time, Raja was completely government-owned. Now it is semi-governmental and under the supervision of the Social Security Organization. When I was in the railway (as deputy), we gave the railway and its fleet to the private sector with the consultation of the then CEO of the railway. I want to say that during my tenure, there was a strong belief in privatization, but this issue has had its ups and downs at different times. In the current situation, this attitude is not as prominent. Meaning, they see the private sector more as a competitor. This is while the private sector is more involved in providing transportation services. The government sector also oversees it. So, the attitude that sees the private sector as a competitor to the government sector is wrong.

The problem of obsolescence seems to be more serious in the aviation sector. What is your opinion?

Yes. One of the most challenging parts is the aviation and airline sector. In this sector, although there are various airline companies, due to high costs, sanctions, and other problems, renovating the fleet is very difficult; although not impossible. For example, a method came to my mind several years ago, but the Ministry of Roads never implemented it. You know that foreign airline companies are very interested in providing passenger transportation in different countries. Currently, foreign airline companies come to Iran, but only operate international flights. Therefore, a portion of our international flights are provided. Based on this, a law can be passed in the parliament that says within a specific period, some reputable foreign airline companies that also offer reasonable prices, can be allowed to operate domestic flights while following our regulations. In such conditions, it is even possible for competition to arise among these companies because each naturally wants to expand their market. Currently, this idea may be the only way to improve our airline situation.

محمد

Mr. Mohammad

Taghizadeh, is your proposed method resistant to domestic airline companies?

“من دوست دارم تا ابد با تو باشم”

“I love to be with you forever.”

Especially small domestic airlines companies.

“I am learning English.”

من در حال یادگیری زبان انگلیسی هستم.

“I am learning English.”

Doesn’t face?

The problem is that the capacity of all these large and small airlines is currently full. As a result, either plane tickets cannot be found or the prices are very high. We are facing a shortage of capacity and the formula I explained creates additional capacity. It is even possible to formulate it in a way that domestic airlines also benefit from it. For example, it is possible to require foreign airlines to provide training to the personnel of domestic airlines or to have scientific and specialized interactions with domestic airlines. In other words, we need initiatives that make domestic airlines feel that it is right for foreign airlines to come and transport passengers, but they also help them.

See, ten years ago, the number of passengers transported by plane was around 22 million. The statistics for the year 1401 show that this number has reached about 12 million. That means it has almost halved. So where did the other half go? They have become passengers who travel by private car and all these accidents happen and the number of fatalities on our streets and roads increases. We don’t want this to happen. We say we should use the extra capacity by traveling abroad.

You mentioned an important point. Every year, we witness the deaths of many citizens in Iran due to car accidents, especially during the Persian New Year. In your opinion, where is the problem? Can we only blame the drivers?

It is completely wrong to say that the problem is with the cars or the roads. Every road eventually has a suitable path and a dangerous turn. These dangerous turns and issues exist on many roads in different countries, including our own, and many of them have been identified. This means that on the road, warning signs are given to indicate that you are approaching a dangerous point.

But the main issue is that in recent years, our country has become more car-oriented and the share of cars has increased. It has been proven all over the world that when a country becomes more car-oriented, the likelihood and number of accidents increase, resulting in more fatalities. Two to three months ago, I gave a four-hour presentation at Amirkabir University on this topic for the provincial authorities, and the main point was this very problem of car-orientedness.

The rumor of an increase in gasoline prices and fuel in general is being discussed every now and then. Is there a new event about to happen? Will the issue, as there is a perspective in this regard, be solved by raising the price of gasoline and fuel to international standards?

It is natural for fuel prices to increase and become more reasonable, as we are currently using subsidized fuel. When the government subsidizes a product, it is sending a message to the people to come and consume this product. For example, if we subsidize meat, it means we are encouraging people to buy meat.

However, I disagree with the issue that fuel prices should increase today. Some people refer to the income level of the people, which in my opinion, has no relation. A country that has brought its fuel prices to the global level has provided reliable and quality public transportation systems and people have good and various choices for traveling with public vehicles. This means that the country has been able to raise fuel prices. That is, “creating facilities for public transportation and creating problems for personal vehicles.”

If we increase the fuel prices in this situation, the problem will not be solved. First, we need to provide the public with a suitable public transportation system. As this system grows and becomes more efficient, we can move towards increasing fuel prices. In order for you to understand the difference between the best public transportation system and the current system, you should keep in mind that the public transportation network in Tehran – which is the best in the country – is only about five percent of what it should be. In contrast, in a developed country and city, you can see a public transportation network that is seventy, eighty, or even ninety percent efficient. Anytime we increase the efficiency in Tehran from five percent to thirty or forty percent, issues like increasing fuel prices become a concern. But what do we do? We develop our roads and build non-level intersections, essentially promoting car-centric transportation and spending the public transportation budget in these areas.

As efficiency and improvement of public transportation network increases, is the need for cars decreasing in Iran?

Yes. Countries should not put their people in a deadlock. On one hand, we have such traffic and on the other hand, we want to raise fuel prices. Some major cities in the world, such as Moscow or Beijing, may have more traffic than us, but people can use public transportation whenever they want to avoid traffic. But in Tehran, if we want to use the metro during rush hour, the population is so high that when the metro stops at a station, no one can get on. The situation is the same for buses. The distance between metro trains is also long due to a shortage of trains. All of these issues need to be addressed. Instead of building various roads – which has been proven to increase traffic in the world – we need to invest money in developing public transportation in various dimensions; both in terms of vehicles, network, and quality.

On December 3rd, we have World Disability Day ahead of us. The issue of public transportation and the accessibility for people with disabilities is a serious problem in our country. What is your evaluation?

The following text was approved by the United Nations several decades ago. This text states that transportation systems, both within and outside of cities, should be designed in a way that a person with physical disabilities, using a wheelchair, walker, or cane, or is visually impaired, can use these facilities without the help of others. This means that sidewalks, streets, public transportation, buildings, etc. should be prepared in a way that a disabled person can easily and safely move around. However, we still have a long way to go in this matter. In some places, they make steep ramps for people with physical disabilities, but the slope is too steep. Or it has been seen that a ramp has been built, but the person in a wheelchair goes forward and sees that it is a dead end and cannot go anywhere. Or, for example, a newspaper stand is placed on the sidewalk for the blind – which should be completely open. Such mistakes happen in other countries as well… Of course, there

Thank you for the time you have given us in the Khat-e-Solh magazine.