Starting with a discussion of development concepts which were applied in practice and which followed the developmentalist paradigm the expansion of traffic infrastructure in colonial and post-colonial periods is presented for the High Asian mountain rim. Selective railways and roads are the major feature of this development, which aimed first on serving the convenience of hill station visitors and followed strategic considerations later on. This bias between regional planning and implementation remains a characteristic feature. At the same time traffic infrastructure without asphalt roads is important for the mountain areas, thus breaking up the strong correlation between development and asphalt roads.