Railway system of the Soviet Union

The Soviet Railways (Russian: Советские железные дороги (СЖД)) was the state owned national railway system of the Soviet Union, headquartered in Moscow. The railway started operations in December 1922, shortly after the formation of the Soviet Union. It operated until the dissolution of the Soviet Union in December 1991.[1] The Soviet Railways were the largest unified railway in the world and the backbone of the Soviet Union's economy. Soviet Railways greatly upgraded and expanded the Russian Imperial Railways to meet the demands of the Soviet Union. The railway was directly under the control of the Ministry of Railways in the Soviet Union.

Soviet Railways
Steam locomotives, such as the P36, were the quintessential symbol of the Soviet Railways.
Overview
HeadquartersMoscow
Reporting markSZhD, SZD
LocaleSoviet Union
Dates of operation19221991
PredecessorRIZhD, JGR
SuccessorRŽD, UZ, BCh, ADDY, SR, HYU, LG, CFM, EVR, LZD, KTZ, OTY, TZD, KTJ
Technical
Track gauge1,520 mm (4 ft 11 2732 in)
Electrification3 kV DC, 25 kV AC, 50 Hz
Length147,400 km (91,600 mi)

After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the Soviet Railways were split into fifteen different national railways belonging to the respective countries. However, after the end of Soviet Railways, rail transport in the former Soviet states greatly declined and have not recovered to their former efficiency to this day.[2] Russian Railways is considered as the primary successor of Soviet Railways. Other successors inherited the Soviet infrastructure in Central Asia.

Part of successor Railways

RailwayCountryYear StartedLength (in Km)
Azerbaijan Railways (ADY)
Azerbaijan
1991
2,932 km
Latvian Railways (LZD)
Latvia
1992
2,269 km
Lithuanian Railways (LG)
Lithuania
1991
1,766 km
Georgian Railways (SR)
Georgia
1992
1,513 km
Moldovian Railways (CFM)
Moldova
1992
1,156 km
Armenian Railways (HYU)
Armenia
1992
845 km
Eesti Raudtee (EVR)
Estonia
1992
816 km
Tajik Railways (TZD)
Tajikistan
1992
616 km
Kyrgyz Railways (KTJ)
Kyrgyzstan
1992
417 km

See also

References

  1. Russian Railways - History of Russian Railways (1914-1991)
  2. Russian Railways - History of Russian Railways (1991-2003)

Further reading

  • Kelly, Peter (April 1984). "Railways in the Soviet Union". Rail Enthusiast. EMAP National Publications. pp. 24–27. ISSN 0262-561X. OCLC 49957965.
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