Editing Kyrgyzstan (section)

==Transport==
[[File:Bishkek 03-2016 img47 minibus at Chuy Prospekt.jpg|thumb|[[Marshrutka]] in [[Bishkek]]]]
{{Main|Transport in Kyrgyzstan}}

Transport in Kyrgyzstan is severely constrained by the country's alpine topography. Roads have to snake up steep valleys, cross passes of {{convert|3000|m|ft}} altitude and more, and are subject to frequent mudslides and snow avalanches. Winter travel is close to impossible in many of the more remote and high-altitude regions.

Additional problems come from the fact that many roads and railway lines built during the [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] period are today intersected by international boundaries, requiring time-consuming border formalities to cross where they are not completely closed. [[Horse]]s are still a much-used transport option, especially in more rural areas; Kyrgyzstan's road infrastructure is not extensive, so horses are able to reach locations that motor vehicles cannot, and they do not require expensive, imported [[fuel]].

===Airports===
[[File:Bishkek 03-2016 img51 Manas Airport.jpg|thumb|[[Manas International Airport]]]]
At the end of the Soviet period there were about 50 airports and airstrips in Kyrgyzstan, many of them built primarily to serve military purposes in this border region so close to China. Only a few of them remain in service today. The [[Kyrgyzstan Air Company]] provides air transport to China, Russia, and other local countries.
* [[Manas International Airport]] near [[Bishkek]] is the main international airport, with services to Moscow, [[Tashkent]], [[Almaty]], [[Ürümqi]], [[Istanbul]], [[Baku]], and [[Dubai]].
* [[Osh Airport]] is the main air terminal in the south of the country, with daily connections to Bishkek, and services to Moscow, Krasnoyarsk, Almaty and more international places.
* [[Jalal-Abad Airport]] is linked to Bishkek by daily flights. The national flag carrier, Kyrgyzstan, operates flights on [[BAe-146]] aircraft. During the summer months, a weekly flight links Jalal-Abad with the Issyk-Kul Region.
* Other facilities built during the Soviet era are either closed down, used only occasionally or restricted to military use (e.g., [[Kant Air Base]] near Bishkek, which is used by the [[Russian Air Force]]).

===Banned airline status===
Kyrgyzstan appears on the European Union's [[List of air carriers banned in the European Union|list of prohibited countries for the certification of airlines]]. This means that no airline that is registered in Kyrgyzstan may operate services of any kind within the European Union, due to safety standards that fail to meet European regulations.<ref>{{Cite web |title=List of banned European Union air carriers |url=http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2008:102:0003:0016:EN:PDF |access-date=2 May 2010}}</ref>

===Railways===
[[File:3ТЭ10М-1024, Кыргызстан, Чуйская область, перегон разъезд № 148 - Каямат-Куркол (Trainpix 204613).jpg|thumb|]]
The [[Chüy Valley]] in the north and the [[Fergana valley]] in the south were endpoints of the [[Soviet Union]]'s rail system in Central Asia. Following the emergence of independent post-Soviet states, the rail lines which were built without regard for administrative boundaries have been cut by borders, and traffic is therefore severely curtailed. The small bits of rail lines within Kyrgyzstan, about {{convert|370|km|0|abbr=on}} ({{convert|1520|mm|1|abbr=on}} broad gauge) in total, have little economic value in the absence of the former bulk traffic over long distances to and from such centres as [[Tashkent]], [[Almaty]], and the cities of Russia.

In 2022, construction began on a new 186&nbsp;km extension of the existing railway from [[Balykchy]] to [[Karakeche]], primarily meant to carry coal from mines at Karakeche to [[Bishkek]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Kyrgyz president launches construction of railway to Kara-Keche |url=https://www.railwaygazette.com/infrastructure/kyrgyz-president-launches-construction-of-railway-to-kara-keche/61435.article |website=Railway Gazette International}}</ref> In June 2023, a railway between Balykchy and Bishkek was officially opened.<ref>{{cite web |author=<!-- not stated --> |date=16 June 2023 |title=Из Бишкека в Балыкчы начал курсировать пассажирский поезд |url=https://mtd.gov.kg/iz-bishkeka-v-balykchy-nachal-kursirovat-passazhirskij-poezd |website=Министерство транспорта и коммуникаций Кыргызской Республики |access-date=19 February 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Kudryavceva |first=Tatyana |date=13 June 2023 |title=Напоминаем: завтра начнет курсировать поезд Бишкек — Балыкчи |url=https://24.kg/obschestvo/296574_napominaem_zavtra_nachnet_kursirovat_poezd_bishkek_balyikchi |website=24.kg |access-date=19 February 2025}}</ref>

The planned construction of a 523&nbsp;km {{ill|China–Kyrgyzstan–Uzbekistan Railway|ru|Железнодорожная магистраль Китай — Кыргызстан — Узбекистан}} (CKU) was announced in 2022, comprising {{convert|213|km|0|abbr=on}} in [[China]], {{convert|260|km|0|abbr=on}} in Kyrgyzstan and {{convert|50|km|0|abbr=on}} in [[Uzbekistan]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Work to start next year on China - Kyrgyzstan - Uzbekistan Railway |url=http://www.railpage.com.au/news/s/work-to-start-next-year-on-china-kyrgyzstan-uzbekistan-railway |access-date=2022-06-10 |website=Railpage |archive-date=10 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220610062448/http://railpage.com.au/news/s/work-to-start-next-year-on-china-kyrgyzstan-uzbekistan-railway |url-status=dead }}</ref> The railway, conceived as part of China's [[Belt and Road Initiative]], is planned to lead from [[Kashgar]] through the [[Torugart Pass]] to [[Jalal-Abad]], and further on to the Uzbek city of [[Andijan]].<ref name="yang"/> Construction is set to begin in July 2025.<ref name="yang">{{cite web |last=Yang |first=William |date=9 January 2025 |title=China aims to deepen Central Asia influence with new railway project |url=https://www.voanews.com/a/china-aims-to-deepen-central-asia-influence-with-new-railway-project/7930839.html |website=[[Voice of America]] |access-date=19 February 2025}}</ref>

====Rail connections with adjacent countries====
:{|
|- style="text-align:left;"
! Neighboring&emsp;<br />country !! Rail<br />linked?&emsp; !! Rail link name&emsp; !! [[Rail gauge]] notes
|-
| [[Transport in Kazakhstan|Kazakhstan]] || Yes || [[Bishkek]] branch || Same gauge
|-
| [[Transport in Uzbekistan|Uzbekistan]] || Yes || [[Osh]] branch || Same gauge
|-
| [[Transport in Tajikistan|Tajikistan]] || No || &emsp;&emsp;— || Same gauge
|- style="vertical-align:top;"
| [[Transport in the People's Republic of China|China]] || No ||  &emsp;&emsp;—  || [[Break of gauge|Gauge break]]: 1524&nbsp;mm vs. 1435&nbsp;mm
|}

===Highways===
[[File:Kyrgyzstan (6052094329).jpg|thumb|Highway A363 Bishkek towards Balykchy, Lake Issyk-Kul and Chinese border ([[Xinjiang]])]]

With support from the [[Asian Development Bank]], a major road linking the north and southwest of the country from the capital city of [[Bishkek]] to [[Osh]] has recently been completed. This considerably eases communication between the two major population centres of the country—the [[Chüy Valley]] in the north and the [[Fergana Valley]] in the South. An offshoot of this road branches off across a 3,500 meter [[mountain pass|pass]] into the [[Talas Valley]] in the northwest. Plans are now being formulated to build a major road from Osh into China.
* ''total:'' {{convert|34000|km|0|abbr=on}} (including {{convert|140|km|0|abbr=on}} of expressways)
* ''paved:'' {{convert|22600|km|0|abbr=on}} (includes some all-weather gravel-surfaced roads)
* ''unpaved:'' {{convert|7700|km|0|abbr=on}} (these roads are made of unstabilized earth and are difficult to negotiate in wet weather) (1990)

===Ports and harbours===
* [[Balykchy]] (Ysyk-Kol or Rybach'ye) on Issyk Kul Lake.