High-speed passenger transportation
On the path to change
The primary goal of the programme we adopted to establish rapid-transit and high-speed railway transportation is to accelerate economic growth rates and improve the quality of life of the Russian population by building a railway network that ensures an optimal ratio of speed, comfort and cost for passengers.
The Moscow-Kazan High-Speed Railway is a priority project for the Moscow-Beijing Eurasian High-Speed Transport Corridor.
The project involves building the most advanced high-speed rolling stock in terms of onboard safety, comfort and quality of services for passengers. International and national experience will be used in its development with technology localised (at least 80%) in Russia.
Based on materials from the final meeting of the Russian Railways Management Board
High-speed passenger transportation is handled by the High-Speed Transportation Directorate (HSTD).
Passenger turnover via high-speed trains grew 25% to 2.5 bln pass. km in 2015. Passenger turnover via long-haul high-speed trains on domestic routes increased 26% to 2.44 bln pass. km. Passenger turnover via high-speed trains on international routes decreased 7.5% to 58.6 mln pass. km in 2015.
The number of passengers transported by high-speed trains increased 22.2% to 4.8 mln in 2015 compared with 2014. In particular, Sapsan and Lastochka (Desiro RUS) trains carried 4.6 mln passengers on long-haul domestic routes (growth of 24%), while Allegro trains carried 0.2 mln passengers on international routes (decrease of 14%). Declining passenger traffic along Russian-Finnish routes has been a general trend for all carriers and is primarily related to the lower economic growth rates in Russia and the rouble’s exchange rate.
Double-decker Sapsan trains continued to operate in 2015 following their launch in August 2014 via the Moscow-St Petersburg route. The Sapsan train occupancy rate was 80.3% for the year.
It should be noted that active efforts to concentrate Sapsan high-speed trains on the Moscow-St Petersburg route helped railway transportation to maintain a 65% share of this route.
In order to meet demand for passenger transportation in the Krasnoyarsk Region, two electric Lastocha (Desiro RUS) train pairs were launched via the Rostov-Krasnodar route starting in March 2015 and one train pair via the Adler-Maykop route starting from 1 May.
The High-Speed Transportation Directorate generated a financial result of RUB 2,077.2 mln in 2015 from performing transportation operations.
| Passengers transported, ‘000 | Passenger turnover, mln pass. km | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 2015 | Change, % | 2014 | 2015 | Change, % | |
| Total, including | 3,921.52 | 4,792.14 | 22.2 | 1,999.44 | 2,500.56 | 25.0 |
| Sapsan | 3,238.82 | 3,764.48 | 16.2 | 1,834.07 | 2,261.52 | 23.3 |
| Allegro | 213.20 | 183.30 | –14.0 | 63.28 | 58.56 | –7.5 |
| Lastochka | 469.50 | 844.36 | 79.8 | 102.09 | 180.48 | 76.8 |
Implementation of rapid-transit and high-speed transportation projects
Moscow-Kazan High-Speed Railway
| Railway location | Moscow, Moscow Region, Vladimir Region, Nizhny Novgorod Region, Chuvash Republic, Mari-El Republic and the Republic of Tatarstan |
| Length | 770 km |
| Travel time from Moscow to Kazan | 3 h 30 min |
| Maximum speed | До 400 km/h |
| Track gauge | 1,520 mm |
A pilot high-speed railway (HSR) project under way in Russia involves the construction of an HSR from Moscow to Kazan with an extension to Yekaterinburg.
This project will help to meet the growing demand in Russian cities for passenger transportation, reduce travel time and offer a whole new level of service.
The project aims to offer the highest level of transportation reliability and safety and provide passengers with the proper level of comfort. The most advanced technologies and equipment will be used to meet these objectives.
Implementing the project will provide an impetus for the development of innovative technologies in Russian economic sectors whose enterprises will be involved in building and supplying HSR infrastructure.
As part of an update to the action plan flow chart for implementing the Moscow-Kazan High-Speed Railway project, the actions included in the flow chart were systematised and the deadlines for their implementation were adjusted until 2021.
According to the updated action plan flow chart, the following work was performed in 2015:
- Conclusion of a general agreement between Russian Railways and High-Speed Rail Lines for the preparation and management of HSR projects.
- Signing of a contract to perform engineering survey work, develop a project to plan and survey areas, and draft design documentation for the construction of the Moscow-Kazan section of the Moscow-Kazan-Yekaterinburg High-Speed Railway in
2015-2016. The parties to the contract are High-Speed Rail Lines and a consortium of designers comprised of Mosgiprotrans, Nizhegorodmetroproekt and Eryuan Chinese Railway Engineering Corporation.
As part of this contract, an engineering survey programme was drafted and approved, a work performance scheduled was prepared, a range of work was launched to prepare the area for construction, design and survey work is under way and a technical consultant has been hired to support this work. Funding in the amount of RUB 3.05 bln was contributed from the Russian federal budget to the charter capital of Russian Railways in 2015 for design work (total project work amounted to RUB 4.757 bln in 2015 excluding VAT).
- Technical requirements were approved for high-speed rolling stock for the HSR.
- The Ministry of Transportation of the Russian Federation, the National Development and Reform Commission of the People’s Republic of China, Russian Railways and China Railway signed a memorandum on the forms of cooperation and models for financing and investing in the Moscow-Kazan High-Speed Railway project, which is a priority project for the Moscow-Beijing Eurasian High-Speed Transport Corridor.
- A Road Map was drafted and signed for Russian-Chinese interaction as part of the implementation of the Moscow-Kazan HSR.
- The draft federal law ‘On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of the Russian Federation in Connection with the Construction of High-Speed Railway Transportation Infrastructure that Establishes Special Considerations for Obtaining a Construction Permit, Preparing Territory and Performing Preparatory Work’ was drafted, endorsed by the federal executive authorities and submitted to the Russian Government for consideration.
- As part of efforts to implement the Russian Railways Group’s Development Strategy until 2030, the Company drafted and approved the Programme for the Development of Rapid-Transit and High-Speed Traffic in Russia until 2030, which primarily focuses on selecting areas for the modernisation of existing lines and the construction of new rapid-transit and high-speed routes that offer the maximum economic and social effects by expanding the boundaries of existing metropolitan areas and forming new urban areas.