2023 Highlights

Daytime trains

As of year‑end 2023, 19.8 million passengers were carried by daytime long‑distance trains, up 9.9% year‑on‑year.

Daytime service accounted for 18.7% of the total annual passenger traffic of JSC FPC.

Double‑decker trains

As of year‑end 2023, double‑decker trains carried more than 12.7 million passengers, 14.0% higher than in 2022. Double‑decker service accounted for 12.0% of total annual passenger traffic of JSC FPC.

A new train No. 357/358 Ufa/Samara – Imeretinsky Resort and three additional trains in the summer period: No. 151/151 Moscow – St. Petersburg, No. 549/550 Adler – Tolyatti and No. 571/571 Samara – Anapa were added to scheduled service.

Higher‑speed trains

In 2023, high‑speed trains made up by JSC FPC carried 10.7 million passengers, which is 6.3% higher than in 2022, accounting for 10.1% of FPC’s total annual passenger traffic.

since 2 June 2023 daytime high‑speed train No. 727/728 St. Petersburg – Moscow

Tourist Trains

In 2023, the number of FPC tourist trains increased to 27 (+58% vs. 2022). The trains called the Pearl of the Caucasus, Winter Fairy Tale, To Karelia, To Siberia and Baikal Express are still very well‑liked by travellers. New projects were launched: To the Vineyards by the Sea, To Northern Lights, Along the Golden Ring, Taste of the Era, Russian North. To Veliky Ustyug, To the Lotus Valley, Grushinsky Express, Along the Oldenburgsk Road, Weekend in Dombay and To the Mountains and Thermal Springs.

Another new multi‑modal tourist route was organised covering Ritsa – Cherepovets – Sochi Airport – Rosa Khutor – Gagra – Sukhum – Sochi – Sochi Airport – Cherepovets. This is a joint project of the parent company, LLC Severstal Aviation Enterprise, JSC FPC and LLC RZD Tour. With the Russian‑Belarusian tourist project called the Belarusian Voyage, many tourists had a chance to visit the Republic of Belarus. The Sochi tourist train continues to run between Russian resort cities and to Abkhazia.

For 2024, the Company’s top priority areas will continue to be the growth and mainstreamification of tourist service.

Car carriers

• Khabarovsk – Novy Urgal
• St. Petersburg – Adler
• Moscow – St. Petersburg
• Moscow – Adler
• Moscow – Vladivostok

Traffic and new trains

In the 2022/2023 standard train schedule, the overall traffic of FPC passenger trains amounted to 468 train pairs, including 277 pairs of express trains, 164 pairs of passenger trains and 27 pairs of high‑speed trains. To improve efficiency and rational utilisation of rolling stock, the schedule service includes 141 pairs of multi‑group trains.

New long‑distance trains:

In order to improve transport accessibility of the regions and attract additional passenger traffic to rail service, new trains were added to the train schedule for 2023/24:

• No. 27/28 Vladivostok – Blagoveshchensk
• No. 99/100 Nizhny Novgorod – Labytnangi
• No. 117/118 St. Petersburg – Labytnangi
• No. 141/142 Smolensk – Arkhangelsk
• No. 143/144 Smolensk – Murmansk
• No. 147/148 Kazan – Moscow
• No. 149/150 Kazan – Moscow
• No. 265/266 Tyumen – Kislovodsk
• No. 373/374 Tyumen – Derbent
• No. 517/518 Saratov – Murmansk
• No. 559/560 Volgograd – Rostov‑on‑Don
• Non‑stop groups of carriages Perm – Kislovodsk
• Non‑stop groups of carriages Chelyabinsk – Tashkent
• Non‑stop groups of carriages Grozny – Kazan
• Non‑stop groups of carriages Arkhangelsk – Syktyvkar
• Non‑stop groups of carriages Nizhny Novgorod – Minsk
• Non‑stop groups of carriages Astrakhan – Anapa

International service

As the epidemiological situation in the Russian Federation returns to normal in 2023, JSC FPC focused its attention on the expansion of international passenger service with friendly neighbouring nations. The Company provided railway passenger service between the Russian Federation and Abkhazia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

The primary goal of international cooperation in 2023 was to augment the passenger traffic on the Russia Federation — Republic of Belarus passenger market, given its capacity under the existing circumstances. Thus, new trains No. 149/150 Samara — Minsk and No. 67/68 St. Petersburg — Smolensk were scheduled, running along the territory of Belarus through the border towns — Nevel, Vitebsk, Rudnya. Moreover, nonstop groups of carriages Minsk — Mineralnye Vody, Nizhny Novgorod — Minsk, Minsk — Arkhangelsk were arranged, and as for Central Asia direction, a non-stop group of carriages from Chelyabinsk to Tashkent was organised in 2023.

A total of 3,205,820 people were carried internationally as of the year-end.

Import substitution

The Russian Federation’s railway transport sector has long been subject to restrictive measures from Western nations. This year is no exception. This may result in issues with rolling stock functioning and the supply of foreign‑made parts required for its upkeep.

In order to ensure technological self‑sufficiency, the Company made a concerted effort in 2022–2023 to substitute imported system designs and assemblies of passenger carriage, as well as production processes related to maintenance and repair of rolling stock. During this period, 1,220 foreign‑made products were listed, including:

• for 866 items (71% of the total number) – counterparts were introduced in design documentation
• 328 items (27% of the total number) – counterparts were selected, but are to be incorporated into the design documentation
• 26 items (2% of the total number) — in the red zone (no counterparts were selected)

However, the situation with these components is not critical and does not affect the continuity of the transportation process, as they are available in the warehouses of suppliers on the territory of the Russian Federation.