Cargo turnover at Georgian transport sector up 2.4% in Q3

Cargo turnover by Georgia's transport sectors, including road transport, railway freight and air cargo, increased by 2.4 percent in the first quarter of 2023 and amounted to 9.5 million tonnes, the Ministry of Economy announced on Thursday.

Figures showed 6.4 million tonnes was transported by road (+1.1 percent), 3.2 million tonnes by railways (+5 percent) and over 4,000 tonnes by air (+0.4 percent).

However, Georgian ports saw a decline in demand. Figures showed the total amount of cargo processed through Poti and Batumi seaports amounted to 2.8 million tonnes, which was 6.8 percent less than in the same quarter of 2022. 

The Ministry also shared data for passenger transport, showing a total 85.8 million passengers transported in the reporting period by air, rail and road, marking a 1.5 percent year-on-year increase.

The body said the highest number of passengers - 84.3 million, or an increase of 0.8 percent - had been transported by road. One million passengers used international airports of Georgia (+48.6 percent), while Georgian Railway served 0.5 million passengers this year (+98.3 percent).