Foreign Funds for a Worn Network
Syria's transport ministry is directing hundreds of millions of dollars in foreign financing into the country's roads and railways, the transport minister, Yarub Badr, said in remarks published on 7 October 2026. The centerpiece is a contract worth $47 million in US dollars (USD) awarded to a Kuwaiti company to rehabilitate the Naseeb–Damascus highway, one of the country's main arteries, with equipment now being mobilized at the site.
The highway sits within a primary road network the ministry measures at 9,058 kilometers, part of a paved system of roughly 45,000 kilometers. The scale of the figures points to a sector leaning heavily on outside capital to rebuild.
A Railway Grant for 2027
A second commitment comes from the World Bank, which has pledged $200 million in 2027 to rehabilitate critical sections of the rail network. Officials stressed the money is a grant, not a loan — a distinction that keeps the work off the state's debt ledger.
The railway system spans 2,800 kilometers, of which about 1,000 are currently in operation.
Fines Pegged to the Pound
Alongside the investment, the ministry plans to raise traffic fines to between 100 and 200 times their current levels. The increase is meant to realign penalties with the depreciation of the Syrian pound (SYP) since the governing law was set in 2008, when the fines were last fixed.
Officials described the move as a deterrent against violations rather than a way to raise revenue.
An Aging Fleet
The plans target a large and old vehicle fleet: about 3.6 million registered vehicles, including 1.3 million passenger cars, 800,000 motorcycles and 72,000 trucks heavier than 11 tons. More than half of those heavy trucks are over 20 years old.
Roughly 1,500 fuel tankers move in and out of the country each day, adding to the strain on the roads now slated for repair.
Coordinating the Overhaul
To bind the measures together, the ministry has proposed a Supreme Council for Sustainable Transport to coordinate work across government agencies. The body would align Syria's planning with the United Nations' 2026–2035 decade for sustainable transport.