In 1995 the main means of transportation in Moldova were railroads (1,150 kilometers) and a highway system (20,100 kilometers overall, including 14,000 kilometers of paved surfaces). The major railroad junctions are Chişinău, Bender/Tighina, Ungheni, Ocnita (Oknitsa, in Russian), Balti, and Basarabeasca (Bessarabka, in Russian). Primary external rail links connect the republic's network with Odesa (in Ukraine) on the Black Sea and with the Romanian cities of Iaşi and Galaţi; they also lead northward into Ukraine. Highways link Moldova's main cities and provide the chief means of transportation within the country, but roads are in poor repair, and gasoline shortages make interurban motor transportation difficult. The country's major airport is in Chişinău. ChiÅŸinău coat-of-arms ChiÅŸinău (IPA /ki. ... Tighina or Bender (Russian: Бендеры) is a city in Transnistria, a breakaway region of Moldova. ... Tighina or Bender (Russian: Бендеры) is a city in Transnistria, a breakaway region of Moldova. ... Ungheni is the largest town without a university in the part of Moldova not included within Transnistria. ... OcniÅ£a is the name of several places: OcniÅ£a, DâmboviÅ£a County, Romania (population: 4,300) OcniÅ£a, Republic of Moldova (population: 9,400) This is a disambiguation page: a list of articles associated with the same title. ... Balti can refer to: BălÅ£i - a city and county in Moldavia Balti dynasty - a branch of the ancient Visigoths Balti language - a language spoken in Baltistan in Kashmir Balti - Muslims of Tibetan origin from Baltistan Balti - a style of food devised in Birmingham in England Balti - an eating... Categories: Moldova-related stubs | Cities in Moldova ... Odessa or Odesa (Ukrainian Одеса, Russian Одесса, Turkish Hacıbey) is a Ukrainian portcity on the Black Sea and the center of countrys Odeska oblast. Population 1,012,500 (2004). ... IaÅŸi (also known outside Romania as Jassy; pronunciation in Romanian: ) is a city and a county (see IaÅŸi County) in north-eastern Romania, in the historic region of Moldavia. ... County GalaÅ£i County Status County capital Mayor Dumitru Nicolae, since 2000 Area 241,5 km² Population (2002) 298,584 Density 123 inh/km² Geographical coordinates 45°27′N 28°2′E Web site http://www. ... ChiÅŸinău coat-of-arms ChiÅŸinău (IPA /ki. ...

Shipping is possible on the lower Prut and Nistru rivers, but water transportation plays only a modest role in the country's transportation system. In 1990 a total of 317 million tonkilometers of freight were carried on inland waterways as compared with 15,007 million ton-kilometers on railroads and 1,673 million ton-kilometers on roads. The Prut river (also known as Pruth) is 950 km long, originating in the Carpathian Mountains in Ukraine and flowing southeast to join the Danube river near Reni, east of Galaţi. ... The river Dniestr (in Polish and Russian; Nistru in Romanian; Дністер, Dnister in Ukrainian; Tyras in Latin; also known as Dniester) is a river in Eastern Europe. ...

The movement of manufactured goods and of passengers on all means of transportation started to decline in 1989. From 1993 to 1994, for example, the total amount of transported goods fell by 31 percent, passenger traffic decreased by 28 percent, and the number of passengers declined by 24 percent. The main causes for these declines are the high cost of transportation, a lack of fuels, and the poor state of Moldova's transportation infrastructure: approximately 20 percent of Moldova's roads are considered in a critical technical state.

Railways:
total: 1,328 km
broad gauge: 1,328 km 1.520-m gauge (1992)

Highways:
total: 12,300 km
paved: 10,738 km
unpaved: 1,562 km (1996 est.)

Waterways: 424 km (1994)

Pipelines: natural gas 310 km (1992)

Ports and harbors: none

Airports: 26 (1994 est.)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 8
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
under 914 m: 3 (1994 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 18
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 5
under 914 m: 8 (1994 est.)

See also : Moldova