Over 5.7 Million Pilgrims Cross Arbaeen Borders in 19 Days
In the 19 days since the commencement of the Arbaeen pilgrimage relocation plan for the current year (July 26th to August 13th), a total of 5,643,074 pilgrims have crossed Iran's Arbaeen borders, according to the National Roads Management Center.
Outbound Pilgrims
During this period, 3.345 million Iranian and non-Iranian pilgrims departed or crossed Iran via the Mehran, Shalamcheh, Chazzabeh, Khosravi, Bashmagh and Tamarchin borders, embarking on their spiritual journey to the holy shrines.
Inbound Pilgrims
Simultaneously, 2.298 million pilgrims returned to the country through these borders, completing their pilgrimage. This leaves 1,046,928 pilgrims still abroad, who are expected to gradually return via the land borders in the coming days.
Busiest Borders
The Mehran, Shalamcheh, and Khosravi borders have recorded the highest traffic for outbound and return journeys, respectively, reflecting their critical role in managing the pilgrimage flow.
Public Transport Highlights
From July 26th to August 13th, 692,216 pilgrims utilized 33,870 trips by the country’s public road transport fleet to reach the borders. Of these, 61% traveled via the Mehran BCP, 25% through Shalamcheh and 7% through Khosravi.
Meanwhile, 398,042 pilgrims returned to their original destinations using 20,988 public transport trips. On return routes, Mehran accounted for 64% of traffic, followed by Shalamcheh with 23%, and Bashmaq and Khosravi with 4% each.
Provincial Contributions
The highest number of pilgrims came from Tehran, Khorasan Razavi, Isfahan, Khuzestan, Qom, East Azerbaijan, Fars, Qazvin, Mazandaran, Kerman, Yazd, Alborz and Sistan and Baluchestan provinces.
The National Roads Management Center continues to monitor and facilitate the smooth movement of pilgrims as the Arbaeen season progresses.