Highways: In 1994, about 189,000 kilometers of roads, of which 108,000 kilometers gravel or paved. Road transport declining element of economic infrastructure; maintenance and truck fleet inadequate to expand service.
Railroads: Three railroad companies provide about 90 percent of national freight haulage, but infrastructure and equipment supply unreliable. In 1993, system had 14,148 kilometers of track, of which 3,050 kilometers electrified, concentrated in north, mainly connecting with Russian system.
Civil Aviation: Kazakstan Airlines and six private companies use twenty airports, one of which (Almaty) has international con-nections. Regular flights to some major cities in CIS countries, Western Europe, Asia, and Middle East.
Inland Waterways: Two rivers, Syrdariya and Ertis, total 4,000 kilometers of navigable water; nineteen river transport com-panies, under state control. In 1992, 1.6 million passengers, 7 million tons of freight moved.
Ports: On Caspian Sea, Aqtau, Atyrau, and Fort Shevchenko, with limited commercial value.
Pipelines: In 1992, some 3,480 kilometers for natural gas, 2,850 kilometers for crude oil, and 1,500 kilometers for refined products. Systems mainly connected with Russian lines to north; new lines in planning stage, 1996, with Western aid, to connect with Europe and other international destinations.
Telecommunications: Limited service, inadequate to planned economic expansion. In 1994, seventeen of 100 urban citizens had telephones, heavily concentrated in Almaty. Most equip-ment outmoded, overburdened. All international connections through Moscow. Radio and television broadcasting govern-ment controlled; satellite television broadcasts from other countries; sixty-one domestic radio stations, one domestic tele-vision network, 1996.
Data as of March 1996