Types of transport in Russia

Russia is the largest geographic country on earth. Spanning five time zones and reaching from the Arctic to the subtropics, Russian transportation crosses varied and challenging terrain. The Russian people have access to many transportation systems developed over centuries of road building, railroads and airport construction. Coming here one may take advantage of all transportation types to complete a long journey.

• Railroad 

In the 19th century Russian czars were among the first monarchs to commit their nation to having good rail transportation. The Trans-Siberian Railroad, completed in 1908, linked Moscow and Ukraine in the West with Vladivostok in the East.

Rail transportation today involves freight and passenger trains, including many miles of city subways and tramways. Many Russian people are born, live and die without owning an automobile but they have readily available rail transportation to take them to within a few miles of any destination. By the end of the 20th century all steam locomotives had been replaced by diesel-electric power units or electric trains.

• Air 

The Russians have had an aircraft industry almost since the day the Wright Brothers first flew. The Russian civil aviation industry rivals most competitors in the West. Aeroflot ,originally a Communist Party-owned airline and the only available connection in the Soviet Union, today is owned by the Russian government but several private operators also make inter-city and international flights. Tupolev and Antonov are the two leading civil aircraft manufacturers, supplying Aeroflot and other customers around the world.

Airports are available at smaller and larger Russian cities. Connections are regularly scheduled and few Russian airlines operate the "hub" systems popular in the West. Flights are direct.

• Automobile 

The Russian automobile industry did not have a good reputation during Communist control. Quality and efficiency issues made Soviet-built automobiles very suspect. Since the fall of communism, however, foreign and domestic investment has raised the quality of Russian automobiles while keeping prices low and affordable for Russian consumers.

As in the United States, the Russians were impressed during World War II with Germany's Autobahn roadways and made immediate efforts to produce superhighways. Limited-access freeways connect most large Russian cities in the West. In the middle of the country, however, road quality quickly diminishes. Although the roads are paved, well maintained and regulated, it is not uncommon to find one-lane roads in the Russian interior connecting small towns and cities. The Russian people, however, are used to driving under these conditions and use appropriate caution to see and yield to oncoming traffic.

• Water Transportation 

Maritime transportation plays an important role in Russian transit, but the country's geography and climate limit the capacity of shipping. Many Russian rivers run from south to north rather than from east to west, constraining their use during the Russian winters.

Russia's major ports providing access to the Baltic Sea are St. Petersburg and Kaliningrad, and Novorossiysk and Sochi are the main Black Sea ports. Vladivostok, Nakhodka, Magadan, and Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy account for the bulk of maritime transportation on the Pacific coast. The largest Arctic port, Murmansk, maintains an ice-free harbor despite its location on the northern shore of the Kola Peninsula.

Navigable inland waterways extend 101,000 kilometers, of which 16,900 kilometers are man-made and 60,400 are navigable at night. Boats of the Russian River Fleet do most of the inland shipping.

Sailing from one place to another onboard one of the best Russian steamers can be an exciting experience!!! Lots of tourist annually chose this way to find the most impressive Russian spots.
Public Transportation

• Underground 

Six Russian cities have underground systems--Moscow, St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg, Nizhniy Novgorod, Novosibirsk, and Samara. The extensive and decorative Moscow subway system, built in the 1930s as a showpiece of Stalinist engineering, remains the most reliable and inexpensive means of transportation in the nation's capital.

• Trams and trolleybuses

Not each town has got these vehicles but those having them tend to do their best to improve the condition of these means of transport.

• Buses or minibuses

These are probably the most popular means of transport for the Russian people. Frankly speaking, most of these buses and marshrutkas (the way the Russians call those minibuses) lack refinement. However, there appear lots of buses and marshrutkas that meet the most critical requirements.

•  Taxis 

Today the Russian government pay special attention to taxis. Due to the great competition among the companies providing such service the condition of the car park is often very good, besides the cost has decreased significantly recently.

• Steamers and boats 

These might also be included into the list of public transport in the towns that are located on the rivers. Many people use them in order to get to a nearby village or their datchas located in the countryside. Besides you may take a short one-hour voyage on a steamer or a boat to enjoy a city onboard.