# RUSSIA | High Speed Rail



## JoKo65 (Feb 28, 2007)

> *High-speed rail expected in Russia by 2014 - RZD*
> 
> 09/02/2007 18:38 ROME, February 9 (RIA Novosti) - High-speed rail links are planned to be built between Russia's major cities and to Finland in 2012-2014, the head of Russian Railways (RZD) said on Friday.
> 
> […]


Whole text: http://en.rian.ru/russia/20070209/60481498.html

Over 300 km/h between Moscow and Piter? This means a new high speed line, I think.


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## coth (Oct 16, 2003)

An entire new line. 350kph. Present line is under upgrade from 200 to 250kph currently.


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## Stan (Jan 23, 2006)

New line sounds good :cheers:


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## JoKo65 (Feb 28, 2007)

This will be the train the Velaro RUS:


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## coth (Oct 16, 2003)

is it rendering?


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## JoKo65 (Feb 28, 2007)

coth said:


> is it rendering?


I think so, as far as I know it's a picture from Siemens.


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## Gag Halfrunt (Jun 25, 2006)

coth said:


> is it rendering?


Could it be a retouched photo of an ICE?

The article says that RZD has signed a memorandum of understanding with FS (Italian railways), so perhaps they're also interested in Pendolino tilting technology.


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## coth (Oct 16, 2003)

No. Pendolino is different case. RZhD have a contract with Siemens on 8 Velaro RUS trains. First train should be shipped at the end of 2007 and will go to service in early 2009.


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## JoKo65 (Feb 28, 2007)

Gag Halfrunt said:


> Could it be a retouched photo of an ICE?
> 
> The article says that RZD has signed a memorandum of understanding with FS (Italian railways), so perhaps they're also interested in Pendolino tilting technology.


The Pendolino is planned for St. Petersburg–Helsinki, the Velaro RUS is planned for Piter–Moscow and later Moscow–Nishni Novgorod, as far as I remember.

The Velaro RUS is a „brother“ of the Velaro E and the ICE 3.


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## 33Hz (Jul 29, 2006)

Russia's fastest train gets from Moscow to St. Petersburg in 3h 45m

Sapsan, Russia's fastest train


I bet this doesn't breakdown in the snow


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## evian (Jun 7, 2008)

«DSCF6697.JPG» на Яндекс.Фотках


Посмотреть на Яндекс.Фотках


Посмотреть на Яндекс.Фотках


«Сапсан» на Яндекс.Фотках


Посмотреть на Яндекс.Фотках


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## bains1971 (Sep 23, 2008)

Nice train how long did it take with the old trains?:cheers:


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## foxmulder (Dec 1, 2007)

-29 degree what a warm place


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## alekssa1 (Jan 29, 2009)

bains1971 said:


> Nice train how long did it take with the old trains?:cheers:


4h 30m day express
8h night train

All of them are still in use as well as 3h 45m Sapsan


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## UD2 (Jan 21, 2006)

so the train average 173km/h.

are they expected to go faster with track upgrades?


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## typhoon_wolf (Dec 29, 2009)

4M6T version of Velaro.

M+T+M+T+T+T+T+M+T+M?


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## FazilLanka (Jan 7, 2009)

173/kmh is not bad at all


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## mopc (Jan 31, 2005)

If it's a Moscow-Saint Pete service, how come it goes to Rostov na Donu?


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## coth (Oct 16, 2003)

It was on trial runs on high speed test track at Maykop.


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## lukaszek89 (Nov 20, 2008)

great looking train:cheers:


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## New York Morning (Mar 22, 2009)

nice train :cheers:


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## coth (Oct 16, 2003)

^the video was taken almost a year ago on a test track


some videos from actual service


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## takini (Aug 28, 2008)

Can someone tell me why is there such a big gap? Is it because the conventional Russian trains are much wider?


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## coth (Oct 16, 2003)

Just poor quality RZD standards on platforms. Trains are wider, but there are a lot of such gaps on many stations even with conventional trains.


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## New York Morning (Mar 22, 2009)

Is that train goes only in the winter?


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## Qtya (Aug 31, 2006)

New York Morning said:


> Is that train goes only in the winter?


^^:hilarious


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## NMAISTER007 (Oct 29, 2008)

Why is that dude on the right going on the rail tracks :lol:? Is he trying to kill himself lol.


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## New York Morning (Mar 22, 2009)

No, I think he's just paing attention to that staff, using his foot :lol:


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## makita09 (Sep 8, 2009)

Well the train isn't going anywhere, its all hooked up to those cables on the ground, looks like he's a railway worker with a purpose.


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## coth (Oct 16, 2003)

First Allegro (Pendolino Sm6) has been shipped to Helsinki


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## JoKo65 (Feb 28, 2007)

*Путешествие на поезде "Сапсан"*


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## Obelixx (Apr 14, 2005)

*Research concerning Maglev-Trains in Russia*

What kind of research was ( or is still) made concerning Maglev trains in Russia? I Know, it was done during the Communist Era and I read that it was planned originally to build the subway of Almaty according this technology, but as result of technical problems not done. Who knows more?


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## ZlobniyShurik (Apr 6, 2010)

Maglev in subway of Almaty? Sorry, dude, it is Sci-Fi.

First of all, maglev is very complex and expensive. Second, the main advantage of maglev is high speed. But high speed can be achived only on long distance (tens or hundreds kilometres). Typical distance between subway station about 1-1.5-2 kilometres. Imho, maglev can not be used as subway from both economic and technical point of view.

P.S. Sorry for engRish.


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## Obelixx (Apr 14, 2005)

Nevertheless, the use of MagLev in Russia would be very sensitive.


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## Somelier (Oct 17, 2010)

Some useful info here
Russian Maglev in the movie
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elY5muZNyTc
Currently, this should be the company working on the technology nowadays
http://erc-temp.ru/
There is loads of information on http://mag-lev.narod.ru/


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## Gadiri (Oct 30, 2009)

> *RZD seeks international high speed expertise​
> 31 August 2011 *
> 
> 
> ...


http://www.railwaygazette.com/nc/ne...seeks-international-high-speed-expertise.html


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## vladygark (Jan 4, 2010)

*Russian Railways orders eight more Sapsan trains *


Russian Railways signed an order for a further eight Siemens Velaro RUS high speed trainsets on December 19. The contract is worth €600m, including a 30-year maintenance agreement. 

The 10-car trainsets will be manufactured at Siemens' Krefeld plant in Germany for delivery from January 2014. They will be used to increase capacity on the Moscow - St Petersburg route, where the first Velaro RUS trains entered service in December 2009 running at up to 250 km/h. A Moscow - Nizhny Novgorod service was launched in July 2010. 

Increasing the fleet will provide spare capacity during train maintenance, and offer the possibility of running in pairs to provide 20-car trains. 

Siemens said the newly-ordered trains will include an additional premium class area and a 'superior-comfort' VIP zone, with all cars offering internet access. 

At the contract signing, RZD President Vladimir Yakunin said Sapsan services between Moscow and St Petersburg 'have become an integral part of the transit infrastructure for the residents of the two cities'; RZD presented a certificate to the five millionth Sapsan passenger on December 17.


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## Woonsocket54 (May 7, 2005)

The Sapsan schedule between Moscow and St Petersburg does not make sense.

http://eng.rzd.ru/isvp/public/rzdeng?STRUCTURE_ID=4212

Sometimes they're every 15 minutes, and sometimes you have to wait nearly 9 hours for the next one.

Bizarre railroad.


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## XAN_ (Jan 13, 2011)

Woonsocket54 said:


> The Sapsan schedule between Moscow and St Petersburg does not make sense.
> 
> http://eng.rzd.ru/isvp/public/rzdeng?STRUCTURE_ID=4212
> 
> ...


Well, because there is an rush hours and a non-rush hours... And the Simens didn't installed 2 train capability on the first set of trains hno: So railway is forced to launch them one after another.

And the maximal gap isn't 9 hours - no sane person would ride a sitting train all night long, while Moscow - St. P. still have a number of sleepers, both premium and regular. There is just no demand on Sapsan after 20 and before 6.


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## Silly_Walks (Aug 23, 2010)

So any news on the brand new high speed line to be constructed between Moscow and St. Petersburg?


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## Woonsocket54 (May 7, 2005)

XAN_ said:


> Well, because there is an rush hours and a non-rush hours... And the Simens didn't installed 2 train capability on the first set of trains hno: So railway is forced to launch them one after another.
> 
> And the maximal gap isn't 9 hours - no sane person would ride a sitting train all night long, while Moscow - St. P. still have a number of sleepers, both premium and regular. There is just no demand on Sapsan after 20 and before 6.


You really have no clue. Did you even look at the schedule?
The nine-hour gap is during the day!
No capital-bound Sapsan trains leave St Petersburg between 7 am and 1:30 pm. No northbound Sapsan trains leave Moscow between 7 am and 1:30pm.

Surely there is demand for Sapsan during the day!

Sure, there are other daytime trains between the two cities that take twice as long. But I wonder why there is such a huge gap during the day.

Acela, for example, runs every hour during the day between New York and the capital, and this on a congested stretch of track dealing with other Amtrak trains and three different suburban railroads.

The 9-hour gap is not surprising. What's surprising is it's preceded by a 15-minute gap. Maybe someone knows the reason...?


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## coth (Oct 16, 2003)

There is no place for them. The line is overloaded with suburban trains.


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## XAN_ (Jan 13, 2011)

Woonsocket54 said:


> You really have no clue. Did you even look at the schedule?
> The nine-hour gap is during the day!
> No capital-bound Sapsan trains leave St Petersburg between 7 am and 1:30 pm. No northbound Sapsan trains leave Moscow between 7 am and 1:30pm.
> 
> ...


Yeah, I missed the day gap, sorry.

AFAIK, NEC has numerous 3- and 4-track stretches (my knowledge about NEC is partly from Microsoft Train Simulator, lol), unlike the Oktyabr Railroad Mainline, wich is 2 track. The construction of 4 track section between Lenigradski Terminal in Moscow and station Krukovo in Moscovska oblast (=state) started this year, and it need some time to be completed.


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## Dase (Sep 6, 2009)

The plane schedules also show that early morning and late evening flights have a higher demand, the sames goes for the trains.

I believe the current schedule does not contain the additional Nizhniy Novgorod-St. Petersburg through trains because currently the units are being moved on after another to Germany for a regular big check.


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## Juni (Feb 11, 2010)

New York Morning said:


> Is that train goes only in the winter?

















*+ + +*


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## Juni (Feb 11, 2010)

blizzard


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## Dakkus (May 12, 2005)

XAN_ said:


> Well, because there is an rush hours and a non-rush hours... And the Simens didn't installed 2 train capability on the first set of trains hno: So railway is forced to launch them one after another.
> 
> And the maximal gap isn't 9 hours - no sane person would ride a sitting train all night long, while Moscow - St. P. still have a number of sleepers, both premium and regular. There is just no demand on Sapsan after 20 and before 6.


Should this be interpreted so that students are not sane? 
The sitting carriages are very much (50% or so) cheaper than sleepers, so people who are okay with sleeping on a seat travel that way. Of course there's no need for a fast and expensive trainset for students that want to sleep and have no need to be at the destination at five in the morning, so they just attach sitting wagons to night trains.


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## XAN_ (Jan 13, 2011)

Dakkus said:


> Should this be interpreted so that students are not sane?
> The sitting carriages are very much (50% or so) cheaper than sleepers, so people who are okay with sleeping on a seat travel that way. Of course there's no need for a fast and expensive trainset for students that want to sleep and have no need to be at the destination at five in the morning, so they just attach sitting wagons to night trains.


3rd class sleeper "platskart" is a traditional way of travelling for students in post-USSR countries 
It's cheap and comfortable at the same time.


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## Dakkus (May 12, 2005)

XAN_ said:


> 3rd class sleeper "platskart" is a traditional way of travelling for students in post-USSR countries
> It's cheap and comfortable at the same time.


Well, obshiy is of course even cheaper than platskarta. Also, so that people don't mix thing up too much, most of passengers in platskarta wagons are something else than students – pretty much everything but businessmen.


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## yaohua2000 (Dec 26, 2008)

Speed profile from my last trip on Sapsan:










Train 152 from Moscow to St. Petersburg. I found the non-stop Sapsan stopped twice on the way, looks like two technical stops, as some rail staffs were doing something just outside of the train. What were they doing there?


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## coth (Oct 16, 2003)

share GPX please


here is two good tracks 

Moscow - Saint Petersburg 
http://www.gpslib.net/tracks/info/15338/Na-"Sapsane"-iz-Moskvi-v-Sankt-Peterburg.html
http://www.gpslib.net/tracks/map-speed.php?id=15338

and Moscow - Nizhny Novgorod
http://www.gpslib.net/tracks/info/12479/Moskva---Nizhniy-Novgorod.html


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## yaohua2000 (Dec 26, 2008)

coth said:


> share GPX please
> 
> 
> here is two good tracks
> ...


Train 152 Moscow to St. Petersburg: http://www.yaohua2000.org/2012/20120118/152.gpx.bz2

Train 001 St. Petersburg to Moscow: http://www.yaohua2000.org/2012/20120118/001.gpx.bz2

Train 003 Beijing to Moscow: http://www.yaohua2000.org/2012/20120118/K3.gpx.bz2


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## coth (Oct 16, 2003)

Thanks. Two stops were made exactly at Tver and Chudovo stations. I guess just technical stops. 154 makes stops at Tver and Chudovo, but runs 10 minutes longer. Afair, originally it was running 3:35, now 3:45. So, possibly timetable adjustments due to extensive poorly scheduled suburban traffic. But mostly there is no sane logic what what RZhD is doing. 

From April 9 152 will run 3:50 with technical stop at Bushevets station (7km before Bologoe).


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## Woonsocket54 (May 7, 2005)

coth said:


> But mostly there is no sane logic what what RZhD is doing.


what? no way!


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## Juni (Feb 11, 2010)

sorry, video has been removed = (


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## Sopomon (Oct 2, 2010)

Juni said:


> It's extreme :crazy: ride by ON (yes, ON) the express train.



Oh Russia! You never cease to surprise


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## XAN_ (Jan 13, 2011)

Sopomon said:


> Oh Russia! You never cease to surprise


Actually that came from German, which have much more aggressive train-surfing subculture. Surfing 300+ ICE is not uncommon, and that is tougher feat than riding 200 km\h stretch near Moscow.


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## Juni (Feb 11, 2010)




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## dimlys1994 (Dec 19, 2010)

Published on 19th December:



> http://www.globalrailnews.com/2013/12/19/siemens-delivers-new-high-speed-sapsan-train-to-russia/
> 
> *Siemens delivers new high-speed Sapsan train to Russia*
> 19 DEC, 2013
> ...


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## dimlys1994 (Dec 19, 2010)

Published today:



> http://www.globalrailnews.com/2014/02/09/rzd-looks-to-restart-moscow-kazan-hsl-project/
> 
> *RZD looks to restart Moscow-Kazan HSL project*
> 9 FEB, 2014
> ...


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## Shenkey (Mar 19, 2009)

20bil roubles for Moscow to Kazan, while 50 bil $ was needed in Sochi :rofl:


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## chornedsnorkack (Mar 13, 2009)

foxmulder said:


> When it comes to rail gauge, Russians are ****. It is a military decision. They will never change that.


Sure. And a small number of high speed passenger trains with variable gauge are not a threat. Masses of equipment on freight trains, or common soldiers in cattle cars, would still need reloading.


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## coth (Oct 16, 2003)

Shenkey said:


> 20bil roubles for Moscow to Kazan, while 50 bil $ was needed in Sochi :rofl:


For design only


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## dimlys1994 (Dec 19, 2010)

From Railway Gazette:



> http://www.railwaygazette.com/news/...cow-kazan-high-speed-line-tenders-called.html
> 
> *Moscow - Kazan high speed line tenders called*
> 17 Mar 2015
> ...


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## kunming tiger (Jun 30, 2011)

chornedsnorkack said:


> Sure. And a small number of high speed passenger trains with variable gauge are not a threat. Masses of equipment on freight trains, or common soldiers in cattle cars, would still need reloading.


 Regardless of the guage it would be a fool's errand.


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## drezdinski (Apr 19, 2013)

dimlys1994 said:


> From Railway Gazette:


I sense the Chinese in this.


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## KingNick (Sep 23, 2010)

drezdinski said:


> I sense the Chinese in this.


EU companies for sure won't be making any money.


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## Rebasepoiss (Jan 6, 2007)

^^ The tender is only "to undertake surveys, project development and route planning".


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## KingNick (Sep 23, 2010)

Rebasepoiss said:


> ^^ The tender is only "to undertake surveys, project development and route planning".


I can read, thanks.


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## Gusiluz (Apr 4, 2013)

About our earlier comments about the width of Russia, the truth is that know the reasons, but in Spain always spoke, too, of military reasons but we know it was not. The Subercasse report (the origin of the wide) was made by civil engineers without experience in railroads and based on outdated French books.
Also, if you do not want to invade you better put a narrow gauge: the Germans changed the width to 28.700 km came down the USSR. Now would be much more difficult.
At first there were different widths in all countries according to the interests of each company. In USA changed wide 20,800 km on June 1, 1886, in the UK there was a call: "War of the widths" until 1845. Baden German Engineers proposed a 1,500 mm width and 2,100 after, since higher boiler consumes relatively less fuel. At the end, the Mannheim-Heidelberg line was inaugurated in 1840 with 1,600 mm width and changed in 1855.
In Portugal began with standard width, but the company went bankrupt and was awarded by the Marqués de Salamanca, which changed its width by one similar to Spanish: 1,665.
Most countries adopted the standard width due to the Berne Conference in 1907.

Sources and much more on the topic in this index on posts SSC (in Spanish). If there are any comments, best in the Thread of gauges.


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## kunming tiger (Jun 30, 2011)

Gusiluz said:


> About our earlier comments about the width of Russia, the truth is that know the reasons, but in Spain always spoke, too, of military reasons but we know it was not. The Subercasse report (the origin of the wide) was made by civil engineers without experience in railroads and based on outdated French books.
> Also, if you do not want to invade you better put a narrow gauge: the Germans changed the width to 28.700 km came down the USSR. Now would be much more difficult.
> At first there were different widths in all countries according to the interests of each company. In USA changed wide 20,800 km on June 1, 1886, in the UK there was a call: "War of the widths" until 1845. Baden German Engineers proposed a 1,500 mm width and 2,100 after, since higher boiler consumes relatively less fuel. At the end, the Mannheim-Heidelberg line was inaugurated in 1840 with 1,600 mm width and changed in 1855.
> In Portugal began with standard width, but the company went bankrupt and was awarded by the Marqués de Salamanca, which changed its width by one similar to Spanish: 1,665.
> ...


 The Chinese don't use a narrow guage can we infer from that they don't mid being invaded?


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## chornedsnorkack (Mar 13, 2009)

kunming tiger said:


> The Chinese don't use a narrow guage can we infer from that they don't mid being invaded?


Um. They do. Hanoi-Kunming, 1000 mm gauge.


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## hmmwv (Jul 19, 2006)

And like the case in Thailand China may persuade the Russians to do HSR lines in 1435mm.


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## chornedsnorkack (Mar 13, 2009)

hmmwv said:


> And like the case in Thailand China may persuade the Russians to do HSR lines in 1435mm.


Thailand has technical problems achieving high speed on 1000 mm. Russia can achieve high speed on 1520 mm - less reason to accept a different gauge.


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## ccdk (Dec 12, 2014)

China may invest $5.2bn in Russia’s first high speed railway
http://rt.com/business/245125-china-invest-russia-train/

Beijing is interested in funding Russia’s first high-speed rail line between Moscow and Kazan. China would invest a total of $5.2 billion (300 billion rubles) in the project.

The bulk of the investment, $4.3 billion at current exchange rates (250 billion rubles) will come in the form of 20-year loans from Chinese banks, and the other $860 million would come as an equity payment from the Chinese company in charge of the project, RIA Novosti reported Sunday, citing sources familiar with the proposal.

Train travel from Moscow to Kazan, the capital of the Tatarstan republic, will be shorted to just 3 and a half hours instead of the more than 14 hours it takes now. The train will be able to reach speeds of 400 kilometers per hour. It will also reduce the travel time between Kazan and Nizhny Novgorod, Russia’s third largest city, to just ninety minutes from the more than 10 and a half hours it currently takes.

The plan was developed to better link mid-size Russian cities by improving transport, and therefore the mobility, of people.

China has embarked on an ambitious program to expand its rail connections, with plans to lay thousands of miles of new track in the coming years.

The world’s fastest passenger train is also in China, the Shanghai Maglev Train can reach speeds of over 430 kilometers per hour.

Next stop, China?
In addition to Kazan, the TranSiberian railway already connects Beijing and other Chinese cities with Russia and Europe, and the Chinese reportedly recently proposed an idea to build a 2-day train from Moscow to Beijing via Kazakhstan.

“Chinese investors are willing to invest in the high-speed rail project between Moscow and Kazan, and Chinese builders can offer the most advanced high-speed railway technology. They are waiting for a decision from the Russian government,” a representative from the High Speed Rail Lines, a subsidiary of Russian Railways, said at the meeting in Sochi.

According to the representative, the Moscow-Kazan project isn’t just an investment for China, but a means to improve communication and trade with Russia and Europe.

Russian Railways is also considering a transport corridor that would link eastern Russia with the United states, via Alaska. This project has long been discussed and is called the Trans-Eurasian Belt Development high-speed link, but no official details have been released by the Russian transport giant.

In October 2014 Russia and China signed a memorandum of understanding over a high-speed railway connection.


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## Gusiluz (Apr 4, 2013)

herruzo41 said:


> http://latestnewsresource.com/es/news/strizhi-zamenjat-sapsany-na-marshrute-moskva----nizhnij-novgorod-s-1-ijunja
> 
> June 1 start running the talgos in Russia


The 4 Talgo no locomotive trains that will enter service between Moscow and Nizhny Novgorod were scheduled for December 2014 in the Moscow-Kiev route.

They are of type T 9, Russian fixed width, fulfilling its GOST standards and requirements for very low temperatures, have cost (on average, with the Moscow-Berlin scheduled for December) 19,29 M € and are 20 trailers mixed branches (seats / beds): 2 First class, 9 Tourist, 5 Beds, Restaurant, Cofee and 2 Generators with 414 seats. I do not get to know if they are wide box, as the second series going for Kazakhstan (for gauge will not be...).

They replace the Velaro Rus (Sapsan) of 604 seats that will, I imagine, to extend the Moscow-Saint Petersburg route. The Velaro Rus are 8 trains, although they have yet to receive other 8 since 2014.

3 h 35 m journey improve current 3h 50m from the Velaro, reaching an average of 128 km/h which will be folded (up to 244) with LAV concession is being studied.


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## hmmwv (Jul 19, 2006)

ccdk said:


> The train will be able to reach speeds of 400 kilometers per hour.


This got to be some sort of mistake.


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## foxmulder (Dec 1, 2007)

hmmwv said:


> This got to be some sort of mistake.


Never say never ;p They may have implied the test speed hence the speed train set can reach or smt. We all know CRH380 series tested well above 400km/h without any modifications.


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## Gusiluz (Apr 4, 2013)

It is unserious comment articles newspaper.
3 hours 30 minutes Moscow-Kazan are provided in a suitable line to 350 km/h, we'll see if performed, and represent an average of 229 km/h, not too high for an authentic HSL. To approve 350 circulates lack of a sustained at 385 km/h.
The Velaro Spaniards broke the world speed record in 2006-2010 (404 km/h) with simple software changes in a production vehicle. The record of Alstom's TGV is a complete assembly: larger wheels, trailers traction, 19.6 MW, 31 kV ...
Instead the CRH380A to themselves were certified at that speed.


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## ccdk (Dec 12, 2014)

*Siemens interested in Moscow-Kazan high-speed railway project*
http://tass.ru/en/economy/792203

SAINT PETERSBURG, April 28. /TASS/. Siemens is interested in the development project of the Moscow-Kazan high-speed railway, Siemens President for Russia and Central Asia Dietrich Muller told journalists Tuesday.

"We are interested in the Moscow-Kazan high-speed railway project. We are particularly interested in trains’ delivery on the basis of local production together with Sinara," he said, adding that "the company would be interested in co-developing."
"We are at the very beginning of the project and it is possible that we will participate in the project as a contractor," Muller said.

As TASS reported earlier, Russian Railways First Vice-President Alexander Misharin said that the construction of the high-speed rail Moscow-Kazan would begin in 2016. "We have announced a design competition, and we will open the envelopes on April 22, and announce the winners before the end of the month. The first stage of the design process is set to end in March of next year, and all the design work should be completed in September of next year. And we should start construction next year as well," Misharin said. According to him, it would be technically possible to build and implement the railway for consistent operation in 2020. He noted that the route has already been approved by the regions, and but the official map will be made public only after the design in completed.

Earlier in April, Russian Railways CEO Vladimir Yakunin told TASS that the Russian Railway is looking into the proposal by China to invest 300 bln rubles ($5.7 bln) into the Moscow-Kazan high speed railway. "They expressed their intent. But there is nothing to discuss yet, there is neither format nor model," Yakunin said when asked about the offer made by the Chinese investors to put in 250 bln rubles ($4.7 bln) worth of credits into the construction and contribute 52 bln rubles ($995.8 mln) into the SPV-company.

Yakunin did not clarify whether the amount of investment from the Chinese side is enough to see the project to fruition though he added that the total amount for the high speed railway construction almost tops 900 billion rubles ($17.2 bln) 1.068 trillion rubles ($20.4 bln) with railroad infrastructure and rolling stock included.

Moscow-Kazan high-speed railroad remains transport ministry’s priority project
At that time, Misharin said that the progress payment with China for the construction of the high speed railway may be made in rubles, dollars or yuan.

The Moscow-Kazan railroad may later be extended to China, and become the high-speed rail Moscow-Beijing, connecting the two countries across Kazakhstan. The transport scheme could become part of the route of a new Silk Road project, which is aimed at tying China with the European and Middle Eastern markets.

The Sino-Russian consortium becomes the only bidder for Moscow - Kazan High Speed Railway engineering, Russian Railways said on Friday in its tender documentation posted on the website.

"The bid was received by the deadline set forth in the tender documentation from OAO Mosgiprotrans - the representative of the bidder with several legal entities acting on its side, that is, Mosgiprotrans, Nizhegorodmetroproekt [Russian design institutes - TASS], and China Railway Eryuan Engineering Group Co. Ltd.," Russian Railways said.

The Moscow-Kazan High Speed Railway’s total length will stand at around 770 kilometers. Trains may go at a speed of 350-400 kilometers per hour, and the time en route between the two cities could be 3-3.5 hours against the current 14 hours.


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## meteoforumitalia (Oct 3, 2009)

Hi everybody!

wanted to ask: which are the possibilities to go by train from S. Petersburg to Moscow? I mean the frequences, the costs and first of all the duration of the journey

I'm living in S. Petersburg for 3 weeks in August, and I was thinking of having a week end in Moscow


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## coth (Oct 16, 2003)

Seats are all reserved, so no point of asking for frequencies. There just few trains. So mostly gets reserved weeks before.
https://pass.rzd.ru/timetable/publi...00000|dt1=09.07.2016|timetable_captcha=865416
https://rasp.yandex.ru/search/?from...&toName=Москва&when=9 июля&highSpeedTrain=258


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## MarcVD (Dec 1, 2008)

meteoforumitalia said:


> wanted to ask: which are the possibilities to go by train from S. Petersburg to Moscow? I mean the frequences, the costs and first of all the duration of the journey


Have a look at those pages : http://www.seat61.com/Russia-trains.htm#Moscow to St Petersburg by train

It contains pointers to on-line scheduling information, and describes the type
of trains that you can find on this route.


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## meteoforumitalia (Oct 3, 2009)

coth said:


> Seats are all reserved, so no point of asking for frequencies. There just few trains. So mostly gets reserved weeks before.
> https://pass.rzd.ru/timetable/publi...00000|dt1=09.07.2016|timetable_captcha=865416
> https://rasp.yandex.ru/search/?from...&toName=Москва&when=9 июля&highSpeedTrain=258





MarcVD said:


> Have a look at those pages : http://www.seat61.com/Russia-trains.htm#Moscow to St Petersburg by train
> 
> It contains pointers to on-line scheduling information, and describes the type
> of trains that you can find on this route.



thank you both!


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## Gannet! (Oct 13, 2007)

coth said:


> . So mostly gets reserved weeks before.


That's a bit of an overstatement! The busiest night trains are those from Friday to Monday nights and those around Russian holidays. That said, there is usually something available even just a few days before. Platzkart (3rd class) tends to sell out first, but I've bought 2nd class tickets on the day of travel on a Friday before. You just might not get your first choice train.

Mid-week I've been on trains that couldn't have been 20% full.

The day-time Sapsan train does seem to be much busier, and often does sell out. Though to say you have to buy weeks in advance is a bit of an overstatement too. 

Seat61 is an AMAZING website. I can wholeheartedly recommend it!

I don't know where you're from, but Russian train fares are noticeably cheaper than those of any Western European country.


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## dimlys1994 (Dec 19, 2010)

From Railway Gazette:



> http://www.railwaygazette.com/news/...-sign-russian-high-speed-train-agreement.html
> 
> *Sinara and CRRC sign Russian high speed train agreement*
> 15 Jul 2016
> ...


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## Dase (Sep 6, 2009)

meteoforumitalia said:


> Hi everybody!
> 
> wanted to ask: which are the possibilities to go by train from S. Petersburg to Moscow? I mean the frequences, the costs and first of all the duration of the journey
> 
> I'm living in S. Petersburg for 3 weeks in August, and I was thinking of having a week end in Moscow


In addition to the other comments I'd recommend to use the site tutu.ru for bookings if you speak a little russian (they have an english version as well, but it's not as detailed). Train prices tend to stay pretty stable until about a week before the date of travel, after that they tend to double. That being said, you can book a 2nd class ticket for the Sapsan during the week for less than 3000 roubles if you book more than a week ahead.


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## dimlys1994 (Dec 19, 2010)

From Rail Journal:



> http://www.railjournal.com/index.ph...w-high-speed-rail-for-russia.html?channel=531
> 
> *Evraz develops new high-speed rail for Russia*
> Thursday, July 28, 2016
> ...


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## Gusiluz (Apr 4, 2013)

*Passengers*

1,000 Miles de millones de Viajeros.km = 1 billion passengers-km


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## xalexey (Feb 7, 2014)

> Over 26,000 passengers carried on international trains Nos. 13/14 Strizh Moscow-Berlin in first year
> The international trains Nos. 13/14 Strizh Moscow-Berlin were launched one year ago.
> 
> In the first year of operations, the trains made more than 100 runs and carried over 26,000 passengers.
> ...


http://eng.rzd.ru/newse/public/en?STRUCTURE_ID=15&layer_id=4839&refererLayerId=4537&refererPageId=704&id=107206


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## Gusiluz (Apr 4, 2013)

^^ A very good occupation.
It is a train that only circulates twice a week (it takes 20 hours), so in a year there have been about 104 trains, so the average is 250 passengers for a train that only has 216 places: 

2 VIP-class (5 double VIP-coupe, equipped with a shower and toilet)
3 VIP-class (2 double VIP-coupe, equipped with a shower and bath + coupe for people with disabilities)
4 First class sleeping cars (6 coupes - 12 seats)
2 First Class (seats, for intermediate journeys)
5 Second class sleeping cars (4 quad coupe + 1 coupe two-seater)
1 Restaurant
1 Bistro
2 Technical wagons (generators)


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## xalexey (Feb 7, 2014)

^^
Need to clarify. 104 trains, this is 104 flights (there and back - 208 trains). As a result, it turns out that 125 passengers per train (216 seats on the train). Fillability - More than half.


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## Gusiluz (Apr 4, 2013)

^^ Train #023 Moscow – Berlin: Tuesday
Train #024 Berlin – Moscow: Friday
Source: Russian Railways.
365 / 7 = 52
52 * 2 = 104


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## Klimov82 (Dec 21, 2017)

xalexey said:


> ^^
> Need to clarify. 104 trains, this is 104 flights (there and back - 208 trains). As a result, it turns out that 125 passengers per train (216 seats on the train). Fillability - More than half.


may be it is not so good


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## xalexey (Feb 7, 2014)

Gusiluz said:


> Moscow – Berlin: Tuesday
> Train #024 Berlin – Moscow: Friday


^^


> departing from Moscow on Fridays and Sundays and from Berlin on Saturdays and Mondays.
> 52 * 4 = 208


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## Porton (Dec 27, 2017)

Tagil


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## Porton (Dec 27, 2017)

Tagil


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## Midnight Sun (Jun 14, 2017)

It's not "high speed"


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## Gusiluz (Apr 4, 2013)

^^ RZD does consider it HS despite circulating at 160. See the official statistics in this message on this page.
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showpost.php?p=143566560&postcount=129


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## TGrave (Mar 27, 2009)

Gusiluz said:


> ^^ RZD does consider it HS despite circulating at 160. See the official statistics in this message on this page.
> http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showpost.php?p=143566560&postcount=129


Officially in Russia high speed trains - those that travel at 200 km/h and faster. Trains from 140 to 199 km/h are called "skorostnoy" - that should be translated as "speed" train, not "high speed".

And in the message you referred, Lastochka trains are marked as NOT high speed. Look at "total alta velocidad" column - it summarizes high speed data which does not include Lastochka column.

In fact 160 km/h is not something unusual for other trains too, and the table for some reason does not contain them though. I.e. Nevskiy Express train goes at 200 km/h, and it is not in the table.


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## Gusiluz (Apr 4, 2013)

Well, it is clear that you have not seen that this message is mine, so I went myself who separated these data from the rest and I pointed your top speed.

What I wanted to note is that as the source of this message, RZD annual report, considered the service Lastochka as high-speed. For example on page 44 where only appear the four services that I put in my message. Of course not from my point of view, that's why I put it separate from the rest and out of the total.


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## ccdk (Dec 12, 2014)

*Spain wants in on Russia's high-speed railway project*
https://www.rt.com/business/421563-russia-high-speed-railway/

The ambitious Moscow-Kazan high-speed railway project has attracted interest from Madrid, according to the Russian Ministry of Transport. The track is a joint project between Russia and China.

“State Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure and Residential Housing of Spain Julio Gomez-Pomar informed Russian Deputy Minister of Transport Alan Lushnikov about Spain’s interest in participating in the Moscow-Kazan project,” the ministry said.

The new 770 kilometers of track between Moscow and Russia’s Tatarstan capital Kazan will stretch through seven regions of Russia. It will have 15 stops, including Vladimir, Nizhny Novgorod, and Cheboksary. The journey from Moscow to Kazan currently takes 12 hours, but will now be reduced to just 3.5 hours.

The new link is part of a network of high-speed lines planned for the football World Cup, which Russia is hosting this year.

Beijing has expressed interest in funding the project, saying it will provide $6 billion. China considers the project not only as an investment, but also as a way of boosting communication and trade with Russia and Europe.

The Sino-Russian joint investment in the railway is around $15 billion. In the future, the Moscow-Kazan route may become a part of a $100-billion high-speed railway between Moscow and Beijing. The railway may also connect to Beijing’s New Silk Road project, which will link China to markets in Europe and the Middle East.

A consortium of major German companies had earlier expressed readiness to provide €2.7 billion for the railroad’s construction. The consortium said that it is ready to manufacture rolling stock for the route. Germany’s Siemens wants to provide an enhanced version of its high-speed Sapsan train for the new line.


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## -III- (Jun 2, 2018)

> *Electric freight locomotive unveiled*
> 
> RUSSIA: A Novocherkassk Electric Locomotive Works Type 2ES5S twin-section 25 kV 50 Hz electric locomotive with asynchronous traction motors was unveiled on June 26, in a ceremony at Transmashholding’s Bryansk plant attended by Russian Railways' CEO Oleg Belozerov.
> 
> ...



link


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## MarcVD (Dec 1, 2008)

-III- said:


> link


Electric loco for freight trains. Nothing to do in an high speed topic...


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## -III- (Jun 2, 2018)

Sorry.


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## Dopersky (Jun 11, 2018)

Anyways, Russia is really improving its HSR.


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## MarcVD (Dec 1, 2008)

Are they ? What's the max speed on the network, on which lines, and how many km ?


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## Gusiluz (Apr 4, 2013)

^^ The maximum commercial speed of the projects is 360 km/h and, being behind CRRC Changchun with its CR400BF, it will be able to run at least 350. It has been published that they would manufacture 100 HST in 2025 for Moscow-Kazan, although it is not official, as far as I know. Siemens and Talgo are also interested, with Velaro Rus HST (Moscow-St. Petersburg 250 km/h>300 km/h) and Strizh hauled trains (Moscow-Berlin and Moscow-Nizhny Novgorod 200 km/h) in the country.

As for the lines, the HSR of 762 km (28.08 M € per km) Moscow-Kazan (Yekaterinburg later) is announced for 2023, and there are plans for another 1,549 km Moscow-Rostov-Adler (Sochi, in the West), and the repeated new line Moscow-St. Petersburg at 360 km/h (2 h 30 m) without concrete plans, as far as I know. 
Moscow-Kazan would go from 11 h 30 m to 3 h 30 m to 218 km/h on average, what seems to indicate a maximum speed of 300 or many stops.


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## RyukyuRhymer (Sep 23, 2007)

https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019...rsburg-trains-to-start-running-in-2026-a67627

*New High-Speed Moscow-St. Petersburg Trains to Start Running in 2026*



> Russia is aiming to launch a new high-speed rail connection between Moscow and St. Petersburg by 2026, the state railway organization said yesterday.
> 
> The proposed launch date was confirmed at a meeting between lawmakers in Russia’s Federation Council and Dmitry Kattsyn, head of high-speed projects at the country’s state rail operator, Russian Railways.
> 
> ...


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## tipa34 (May 13, 2019)

I don't understant... St Petersburg and moscow are not already linked by the Sapsan's High speed rail Infrastruture and train ?

Will be there two different infrastructure and high speed trains by 2026 ?


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## maginn (Mar 3, 2014)

The Sapsan train is not fast enough... 
There is even a daily train called the Nevsky Express between Moscow and St. Petersburg that takes the same amount of time to travel between the two cities for a fraction of the cost of Sapsan! 
People who are time-sensitive may choose to fly rather than take the Sapsan too, as flights are almost the same price. Price-sensitive people choose the bus.


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## Silly_Walks (Aug 23, 2010)

tipa34 said:


> I don't understant... St Petersburg and moscow are not already linked by the Sapsan's High speed rail Infrastruture and train ?
> 
> Will be there two different infrastructure and high speed trains by 2026 ?


There are proper high speed trains at the moment, but not a proper 300 km/h line.


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## Stuu (Feb 7, 2007)

tipa34 said:


> I don't understant... St Petersburg and moscow are not already linked by the Sapsan's High speed rail Infrastruture and train ?
> 
> Will be there two different infrastructure and high speed trains by 2026 ?


They run at up to 250 km/h on the existing railway, but to do so all the other trains have to wait in loops for them to pass by, which delays everything other than the fast trains, and must reduce the total capacity of the route


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## cheehg (Jan 5, 2018)

Stuu said:


> They run at up to 250 km/h on the existing railway, but to do so all the other trains have to wait in loops for them to pass by, which delays everything other than the fast trains, and must reduce the total capacity of the route


the speed gap is too big. 120/250 is not very optimistic. It was the same problem in China back before 2007 when many HS trains run on legacy lines. Now China reduced speed limit on legacy lines to 160km/h although many lines are capable to 200-250km/h. New HSR will be a good idea for Moscow to S.P.


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## 1772 (Aug 18, 2009)

I believe I read something about a HSR line between Moscow and Sochi. Are there any such plans?


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## RyukyuRhymer (Sep 23, 2007)

1772 said:


> I believe I read something about a HSR line between Moscow and Sochi. Are there any such plans?












I heard of some idea to make a HSR capable rail (but not necessarily HSR running) line from Moscow to Rostov. it doesnt look like it goes as far as Sochi though


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## Artemiy.arch (Mar 24, 2020)

1772 said:


> I believe I read something about a HSR line between Moscow and Sochi. Are there any such plans?


That’s right!
Current plans:
High speed Moscow-Saint Petersburg (construction
:2023-2027)
High speed Moscow-Sochi (construction: 2024-2035)
High speed Moscow-Kazan is postponed, but it will be constructed later as a part of HSR Eurasia
¡These plans outline a new transportation strategy, thought financing is unclear, especially in the current situation, so Moscow-SPB is the most realistic one, but it will face severe delays (until at least 2030) if the government doesn’t back and push it!
Source: Высокоскоростную магистраль Москва - Сочи могут построить к 2035 году


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