23 October 2024 The Railways of Iran

Presenter: Tim Morton

Unusual subject matter for our October meeting, with much anticipation, as nobody in the audience had ever visited Iran. This was to be no conventional holiday snap presentation or a tedious collection of non-descript pictures.

Tim shared the adventure he undertook with a small hardy group on an escorted tour of much of the Iran rail network, after first ensuring all necessary precautions were in place. Away from the population centres we were treated to some stunning views, in a mountainous country dominated by mountain ranges separating basins and plateaus.

The journey began in Tehran before embarking on a three day journey to Tabriz in the North West of the country. A flight followed South East to Yazd in the central region.

In the second half we were shown the Trans-Iranian Railway connecting the Caspian Sea with the Persian Gulf encompassing the Alborz and Zagros mountains. A historic picture of LMS Class 8Fs shipped to the region during the Second World War a reminder of British involvement in the area. A fascinating fact that there were 20 passing loops on the line, allowing for 30 daily trains enabling each to keep at a constant speed throughout, such was the building of the infrastructure.

Much of the rolling stock throughout looked mildly familiar with Siemens being a dominant supplier, initial builds in Germany with later deliveries constructed in Iran.

A lovely human touch when Tim recalled locals voluntarily bringing the group food and drink in an act of friendship part of a fascinating look at the picturesque Iran landscape.

The presentation was extremely well narrated with some superb photography, making for an excellent evening’s entertainment for which we thank Tim very much indeed.