Passenger-kilometers by rail in Iran
Iran: Passenger-kilometers by rail was 11.23 billion million passenger-km in 2021. ▲ Rising
Passenger-kilometers by rail in Iran, 1995–2021
Source: International Union of Railways (UIC) and OECD, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in million passenger-km.
Analysis
Iran recorded 11.23 billion million passenger-km for passenger-kilometers by rail in 2021.
The figure is up 117.2% on the previous year and down 37.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, passenger-kilometers by rail in Iran peaked at 17.88 billion million passenger-km in 2011 and was at its lowest, 5.17 billion million passenger-km, in 2020.
That places Iran 18th out of 101 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 27 years of available data.
Passenger-kilometers by rail in Iran, year by year
| Year | million passenger-km | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 7.29 billion million passenger-km | — |
| 1996 | 7.04 billion million passenger-km | -3.4% |
| 1997 | 6.10 billion million passenger-km | -13.4% |
| 1998 | 5.63 billion million passenger-km | -7.7% |
| 1999 | 6.45 billion million passenger-km | +14.6% |
| 2000 | 7.12 billion million passenger-km | +10.4% |
| 2001 | 8.04 billion million passenger-km | +13.0% |
| 2002 | 8.58 billion million passenger-km | +6.7% |
| 2003 | 9.31 billion million passenger-km | +8.5% |
| 2004 | 10.01 billion million passenger-km | +7.5% |
| 2005 | 11.15 billion million passenger-km | +11.4% |
| 2006 | 12.55 billion million passenger-km | +12.6% |
| 2007 | 13.90 billion million passenger-km | +10.8% |
| 2008 | 15.31 billion million passenger-km | +10.2% |
| 2009 | 16.81 billion million passenger-km | +9.8% |
| 2010 | 17.61 billion million passenger-km | +4.7% |
| 2011 | 17.88 billion million passenger-km | +1.5% |
| 2012 | 17.17 billion million passenger-km | -3.9% |
| 2013 | 17.41 billion million passenger-km | +1.4% |
| 2014 | 16.27 billion million passenger-km | -6.5% |
| 2015 | 14.94 billion million passenger-km | -8.2% |
| 2016 | 12.98 billion million passenger-km | -13.1% |
| 2017 | 13.27 billion million passenger-km | +2.2% |
| 2018 | 15.24 billion million passenger-km | +14.8% |
| 2019 | 14.88 billion million passenger-km | -2.4% |
| 2020 | 5.17 billion million passenger-km | -65.2% |
| 2021 | 11.23 billion million passenger-km | +117.2% |
Iran compared with similar countries
- Iran's 11.23 billion million passenger-km is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 503.54 million million passenger-km, 22.3× the median. (33 countries reporting)
- Iran's 11.23 billion million passenger-km is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 928.17 million million passenger-km, 12.1× the median. (12 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Passenger-kilometers by rail in Iran changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | +117.2% | 5.17 billion million passenger-km | 11.23 billion million passenger-km |
| 2020 | -65.2% | 14.88 billion million passenger-km | 5.17 billion million passenger-km |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 6.50 billion million passenger-km | 5.63 billion million passenger-km | 7.29 billion million passenger-km | 5 |
| 2000s | 11.28 billion million passenger-km | 7.12 billion million passenger-km | 16.81 billion million passenger-km | 10 |
| 2010s | 15.76 billion million passenger-km | 12.98 billion million passenger-km | 17.88 billion million passenger-km | 10 |
| 2020s | 8.20 billion million passenger-km | 5.17 billion million passenger-km | 11.23 billion million passenger-km | 2 |
Countries ranked near Iran
- 15 Poland 15.84 billion million passenger-km compare
- 16 Switzerland 14.31 billion million passenger-km compare
- 17 United States 12.46 billion million passenger-km compare
- 19 Netherlands 10.90 billion million passenger-km compare
- 20 Ukraine 10.70 billion million passenger-km compare
- 21 Turkey 10.68 billion million passenger-km compare
More reference data data for Iran
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 12.01 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.34 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 3.47 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 26.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 26.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Direct emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 8.15 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5) - Enteric Fermentation 35,629 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5) - Crop Residues 1,936 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Direct emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 34.53 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5) - Burning - Crop residues 281.19 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is passenger-kilometers by rail in Iran?
- Passenger-kilometers by rail in Iran was 11.23 billion million passenger-km in 2021, according to International Union of Railways (UIC) and OECD, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest passenger-kilometers by rail recorded in Iran?
- The highest recorded value was 17.88 billion million passenger-km in 2011.
- What is the lowest passenger-kilometers by rail recorded in Iran?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.17 billion million passenger-km in 2020.
- How does Iran rank for passenger-kilometers by rail?
- Iran ranks 18th out of 101 countries with data for 2021.
- Is passenger-kilometers by rail rising or falling in Iran?
- Over the last ten years it is down 37.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Iran data come from?
- The figures come from International Union of Railways (UIC) and OECD, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Passenger-kilometers by rail. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 27 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
The number of passengers transported by rail, multiplied by the kilometers traveled. This is measured in passenger-kilometers.