CIA Factbook The World Factbook 1994: IranCommunications Railroads: 4,852 km total; 4,760 km 1.432-meter gauge, 92 km 1.676-meter gauge; 480 km under construction from Bafq to Bandar-e 'Abbas, rail construction from Bafq to Sirjan has been completed and is operational; section from Sirjan to Bandar-e 'Abbas still under construction Highways: • total: 140,200 km • paved: 42,694 km • unpaved: gravel, crushed stone 46,866 km; improved earth 49,440 km; unimproved earth 1,200 km Inland waterways: 904 km; the Shatt al Arab is usually navigable by maritime traffic for about 130 km; channel has been dredged to 3 meters and is in use Pipelines: crude oil 5,900 km; petroleum products 3,900 km; natural gas 4,550 km Ports: Abadan (largely destroyed in fighting during 1980-88 war), Bandar Beheshti, Bandar-e 'Abbas, Bandar-e Bushehr, Bandar-e Khomeyni, Bandar-e Torkeman (Caspian Sea port), Khorramshahr (repaired after being largely destroyed in fighting during 1980-88 war) has been in limited operation since November 1992 Merchant marine: 139 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,480,000 GRT/8,332,667 DWT, bulk 48, cargo 41, chemical tanker 4, combination bulk 2, liquefied gas 1, oil tanker 31, refrigerated cargo 3, roll-on/roll-off cargo 8, short-sea passenger 1 Airports: • total: 219 • usable: 193 • with permanent-surface runways: 80 • with runways over 3,659 m: 17 • with runways 2,440-3,659 m: 18 • with runways 1,220-2,439 m: 70 Telecommunications: microwave radio relay extends throughout country; system centered in Tehran; 2,143,000 telephones (35 telephones per 1,000 persons); broadcast stations—77 AM, 3 FM, 28 TV; satellite earth stations—2 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT and 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT; HF radio and microwave radio relay to Turkey, Pakistan, Syria, Kuwait, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan; submarine fiber optic cable to UAE