The railway transport development in the new BRICS countries

With effect from January 1, 2024, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have become new members of the BRICS. Today, BRICS is an association of 10 countries that account for about 42 % of the world’s total population (2.8 billion people) and 27 % of the global GDP.

According to experts, a major focus is made on the association’s prospective economic potential and its expected share of the world’s economy. What seems interesting in the context of the continued economic growth is the research in the field of development of the transport industry in the BRICS countries.

Earlier, the BRICS Transport journal (Issue No. 2 (4), 2023) presented an overview of the state and progress of high-speed railway transport in the five BRICS founding countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and the Republic of South Africa). In connection with the expansion of the transnational association, it is proposed that the research should be extended. The authors used both findings of scholarly works in the field of railway transport development, and BRICS summit reports and presentations available on Russian and foreign information platforms.

The paper analyses the development of railway transport in the countries that have joined BRICS recently (Egypt, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, and Saudi Arabia), in particular, the prospects of development of express and high-speed rail services.

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