ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: The Pakistan Railways has said that the number of passengers traveling by trains has increased from 47 million in 2013-14 to 52 million in 2014-15.
In a statement, a railways spokesman said that it is expected that the number of people who travel by trains will rise to 57 billion this year.
The spokesman told that the Pakistan Railways is planning to start a fast express goods train between Karachi Port and industrial cities of Punjab in collaboration with private sector to facilitate the business community.
The transportation of goods is the main source of income of the department while passenger trains are run to facilitate the people, he said.
The Pakistan Railways spokesman said that after coming to power, the present government has enhanced the number of goods train operating between Karachi Port and Lahore from 1 to 10.
In addition, he said that the speed of goods train was 55 kilometers per hour previously but now it has been increased to 80 kilometers per hour.
The Pakistan Railways owns approximately 4,800 miles (7,791 kilometers) of track all across the country, stretching from Torkham to Karachi.
It carries more than 50 million passengers annually and daily operates 228 mail, express and passenger trains.
Moreover, it also operates special trains during various occasions such as Eid-ul Fitr, Eid-ul Azha, Independence Day or others.
