The inaugural train departed Tehran at 09.30 local time, arriving in Van at 08.00 on June 25.
Passengers must disembark at Razi station on the Iranian side of the border to clear customs and leave the train again at Kapikoy to clear Turkish customs and immigration. The timetable allows around two hours for checks at Kapikoy.
According to local media reports the first train carried 79 passengers from Iran to Turkey.
Cross-border passenger and freight services were suspended in 2016 when a bomb attack in eastern Turkey derailed a freight train bound for Tabriz in Iran. Raja Passenger Trains Company subsequently reinstated Tabriz - Van passenger services in June 2018.
