Since the 19th century, Pakistan’s clattering railways have carried passengers and cargo from the Arabian Sea to the Himalayas. But the colonial-era network is in severe disrepair, with decrepit trains and some tracks left unusable by devastating flooding last year.
Together with its close ally China, Pakistan is now preparing at least a partial solution: a $10bn revamp of its 1,700km arterial Main Line 1 railway to be paid for with loans from Beijing.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and President Xi Jinping agreed in November to begin work on the line, which links the southern port city of Karachi to Lahore and the capital, Islamabad. The project is expected to increase maximum train speeds on the route to 160kph.
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