Iranian Railway Company has signed contract with Siemens of Germany to acquire some 3,000 wagons by the end of March, Babak Ahmadi Naqedi, senior official with Islamic Republic of Iran Railways said on Wednesday.

The company decided to put out of service all the wagons built more than 55 years ago, Ahmadi Naqedi was quoted as saying in an Irna report.

He said that according to a new approval, the Islamic Republic of Iran Railways has plans to put out of service the wagons with the age of 45 years this year.

Noting that Tehran-Mashad trains will be electricity-powered and the plan is passing its final stages, he said that some 70 electricity-powered locomotives have been allocated to the project.

He said that modernization of the railway is one of the four main priorities of the country.