Moscow–Saint Petersburg high-speed railway

Railway line in Russia
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4 ft 11+27⁄32 in)Electrification25 kV 50 Hz AC
3 kV DC

Moscow–Saint Petersburg high-speed railway (Russian ВСМ Москва — Санкт-Петербург), also known as VSM-1 is a high-speed railway line under construction in Russia.[1]

History

In 2020, Russian Railways reported construction was scheduled to begin in 2021.[2] The journey time was planned to take approximately 2 hours 19 minutes, and the length of the line would be 679 km.[3][4]

In November 2021, reports suggested it was likely for the project to be abandoned favouring possible upgrades to the existing Saint Petersburg-Moscow railway.[5]

In August 2023, president Vladimir Putin announced his support for taking the project forward, as well as making progress towards Nizhny Novgorod, Voronezh and Kazan.[1]

On December 15, 2023, the Russian minister of transport, Vitaly Savelyev, said that they have formed the main parameters of implementation and developed a financial and organizational model.[6]

Construction began in March 2024.[1]

The railway will cost more than 2.3 trillion rubles ($25.97 billion), and will be built by VSM Two Capitals, a Russian company, using both state and private money, under concession.[7] The Russian government plans to allocate more than 300 billion rubles from the National Welfare Fund at 1% in 2025, and 328 billion rubles in subsidies in the period between 2024 and 2038.[7][8] In total, it is estimated 580 billion rubles will need to be allocated form the National Wealth Fund, with the remaining amount coming sources such as VTB, Sberbank and Gazprombank (state-owned banks).[7]

Route

The line was planned to be 679 km long, and will serve 16 stations (including 4 intermediate stations within Moscow).[9][10]

The planned stations as of 2024 are, in Moscow Oblast: Moscow-Leningradsky, Rizhskaya, Petrovsky-Razumovskaya, Zelenograd-Kryukovo and Vysokovo, in Tver Oblast: New Tver, Logovezh and Vypolzovo, in Novgorod Oblast: Valday, Gorki, Veliky Novgorod and Tigoda, in Leningrad Oblast: Zharovskaya, and in Saint Petersburg: Obukhovo-2 and Moskovsky railway station.[11][12]

Operation

Trains will run in service consistently at 250 km/h, while the line is reported to be designed to handle speeds of 400 km/h.[13][1]

The line is estimated to cut travel time between Moscow and St Petersburg to 2 hours 15 minutes, running at 15-20 minute headways, later increasing in frequency to 10–15 minutes by 2030.[14]

Rolling stock

Bely Krechet
Presentation of concept design at the "Manezh Station: Moscow Transport 2030" exhibition
Stock typeElectric multiple unit
ManufacturerUral Locomotives
DesignerRailway Transport Engineering Centre (RZD and Sinara Transport Machines)
AssemblyVerkhnyaya Pyshma, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia
Entered service2028 (planned)
Number under construction43 (planned)
Capacity454 seats (8 car sets)
Specifications
Maximum speed
  • Design (max speed):
  • 400 km/h (250 mph)
  • Design (commercial speed):
  • 360 km/h (220 mph)
Electric system(s)25 kV 50 Hz AC overhead line
Current collector(s)Pantograph
Track gauge1,520 mm (4 ft 11+27⁄32 in) Russian gauge

A previous venture to produce high speed trains with Siemens, a company which manufactured the Velaro RUS trains on the Sapsan service, was unsuccessful due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, following which Siemens exited the Russian market and the joint venture.[1][15]

In April 2024, a 12 billion ruble ($119.6 million) contract was signed with Ural Locomotives (a subsidiary of Sinara Group) to produce 2 pre-series trains. The trains will be 8 cars long, with a design speed of 400 km/h, and a maximum operational speed of 360 km/h.[16]

In September 2024, an agreement for 41 trainsets was signed by GTLK, a Russian state lessor, and VSM Two Capitals (VSM Dve Stolitsy), the concessionaire, at the 'Manezh Station - Moscow Transport 2030' exhibition, which included a mock-up of the design, in Manezhnaya Square, Moscow. In addition to the pre-series trains, it brings the total number of trains on order to 43, to be delivered by 2030.[17][18]

They will be branded as 'Bely Krechet' (white gyrfalcon) trains, alongside other Russian train designs named after birds.[19]

The trains will be composed of 8 or 16 cars, with 4 classes of seating and a bistro car. 8 car trains will have 454 seats (21 first, 68 business, 135 standard, and 230 'comfort' seats). Designs are to be finalised by Q1 2026, with the first prototype built by 2027, and certified by 2028.[18][19]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e "Russia begins construction of first high-speed line". International Railway Journal. 2024-03-15. Archived from the original on 2024-03-15.
  2. ^ "Строительство высокоскоростной магистрали «Москва – Санкт-Петербург» начнется в 2021 году". rzd.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 23 December 2020.
  3. ^ "На пути встаёт Великий Новгород". gudok.ru. Retrieved 23 December 2020.
  4. ^ "В РЖД хотят проложить ВСМ между Москвой и Петербургом через Великий Новгород" (in Russian). Vedomosti. Retrieved 23 December 2020.
  5. ^ ""Коммерсантъ" узнал о возможном отказе от магистрали Москва — Петербург". РБК (in Russian). 2021-11-11. Retrieved 2023-06-04.
  6. ^ "Минтранс заявил, что основные параметры реализации ВСМ Москва - Петербург сформированы" [The Ministry of Transport announced that the main parameters for the implementation of the Moscow-St. Petersburg high-speed railway have been formed]. TASS (in Russian). 2023-12-05.
  7. ^ a b c Stolyarov, Gleb (2024-06-06). Harvey, Jan (ed.). "Russia to build high-speed railway between Moscow and St. Petersburg". Reuters.
  8. ^ Rogozin, Oleg (2024-04-11). "Магистраль набирает скорость: на ее строительство выделят 300 млрд рублей" [The highway is picking up speed: 300 billion rubles will be allocated for its construction]. Sankt-Peterburgskie Vedomosti. В поручении главы государства отмечается, что правительство и концессионеры должны до 1 июля нынешнего года принять все необходимые решения, исходя из того что в 2025 году из Фонда национального благосостояния средств для предоставления кредитов на строительство объектов транспортной инфраструктуры, необходимых для реализации этого проекта, будет выделено не менее 300 млрд рублей. Причем средства предоставят по ставке не более 1 % годовых в первые десять лет. [The order of the head of state notes that the government and concessionaires must make all necessary decisions by July 1 of this year, based on the fact that in 2025, at least 300 billion rubles will be allocated from the National Welfare Fund to provide loans for the construction of transport infrastructure facilities necessary for the implementation of this project. Moreover, the funds will be provided at a rate of no more than 1% per annum in the first ten years.]
  9. ^ D'Silva, Krishtina (2024-03-15). "Moscow Commences Construction of Russia's First High-Speed Rail Line". Urban Transport News.
  10. ^ "Путин дал старт началу строительства ВСМ Москва - Петербург" [Putin launched the construction of the Moscow-St. Petersburg high-speed railway]. TASS (in Russian). 2024-03-14. [The high speed railway (HSR) is designed for traffic at speeds above 250 km/h. 679 km total length. 10-15 min train interval. 28 trains first batch.]
  11. ^ Yablokov, Pavel (2024-03-22). "Зачем ВСМ Москва — Санкт-Петербург нужно столько остановок?" [Why does the Moscow-Saint Petersburg high-speed railway need so many stops?]. TR.ru (in Russian).
  12. ^ "В РЖД назвали 16 остановок на маршруте ВСМ Москва — Петербург" [Russian Railways names 16 stops on Moscow-St. Petersburg high-speed rail route]. RBC (in Russian). 2024-03-15.
  13. ^ Keller, Mitchell (2024-03-15). "Putin greenlights construction for Moscow-St. Petersburg high-speed rail". Construction Briefing.
  14. ^ "Putin to give start to building Moscow-St. Pete high-speed railway — Kremlin". TASS. 2024-03-14.
  15. ^ "Siemens and Russian Railways to develop new high-speed train". RailTech.com. 2021-11-09. Retrieved 2024-03-15.
  16. ^ Smith, Kevin (2024-04-18). "Russian Railways orders prototype high-speed trains". International Railway Journal.
  17. ^ Smith, Kevin (2024-09-04). "Russian high-speed train deal signed". International Railway Journal.
  18. ^ a b "White Gyrfalcon high speed trains ordered for Moskva – St Petersburg line". Railway Gazette International. 2024-09-03.
  19. ^ a b "В Москве показали российский поезд для ВСМ с названием "Белый кречет"" [A Russian high-speed train called "White Krechet" was shown in Moscow]. RIA Novosti (in Russian).


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