Elektrichka

An elektrichka is a type of passenger train that runs on electric power. It was developed in the Soviet Union and is used mostly for travel between towns and cities in places like Russia and Ukraine. These trains are very important because many people use them to get around every day.

In 2007, there were over four thousand of these trains running each day just on the Russian Railways network alone. Most of them were electric, making them a clean and efficient way to travel. The very first elektrichka started its journey on July 6, 1926, in what is now Azerbaijan, between the cities of Baku and Sabunchi.

Besides regular suburban trips, some cities also have special elektrichkas for travel within the city or to the airport. These are called gorodskaya elektrichkas and aeroexpresses. They help people move quickly and easily in busy urban areas.

Name

"Elektrichka" started as a short way to say elektropoyezd, which means "electric train" in Russian. Over time, it has become an official name in some places. For example, the train service in Kyiv is called "elektrychka" in Ukrainian. Even popular websites like Yandex use the word "elektrichka" in their train schedules.

After the Soviet Union broke apart, some people who don’t speak Russian don’t use the word "Elektrichka" much anymore.

Rolling stock

All elektrichkas are special trains that run on electricity from overhead wires. These trains usually have between 4 and 14 cars, with a driver at each end. A train with 10 cars can carry around 1,200 people.

These trains were made in Riga, Latvia, during the Soviet era and were called "ER" models. Two common types are the ER-2 and ER-9. Some cars have motors, while others have equipment for controlling the train. Cars with motors have special devices on the roof to collect electricity. Not every car has a restroom, and some trains have only a few restrooms near the driver’s seat. Each car has four doors that open automatically when the train stops. These doors can have small steps to help passengers get on and off at stations with lower platforms. The seats inside are simple benches that can hold three people each, placed next to the windows.

After the Soviet Union broke up, some countries tried making new models, but many still use the older Soviet trains. Because of limited money in the 1990s, railways often fix up the old trains instead of buying new ones. Most elektrichkas still look similar, usually painted dark green with red and yellow stripes. Some newer models have wider doors or different engines.

Non-elektrichka regional trains

The dizelnyi poezd (Russian: дизельный поезд, "diesel train") is a type of commuter train similar to the elektrichka. It is a diesel multiple unit with up to six cars. Many routes used older trains with one or more passenger cars pulled by a diesel or electric locomotive. However, these trains are now less common because most tracks in Soviet railroads have been electrified and updated for elektrichkas. Electric trains are faster and better for suburban travel. Non-elektrichka trains are also slower and not as important for moving many people. They are being replaced by more efficient railcars (called relsovyi avtobus, meaning "railbuses").

Typical service organization

An elektrichka train has a driver and an assistant driver. Because the stations can be far apart, these trains often stop at special spots called "platforms." Some of these stops are just simple platforms, shorter than the train, and located in quiet areas. A few platforms don’t have staff or lights. In certain regions, there are stops that only open for certain times of the year. In forest areas, these are sometimes called "mushroom stops" because people pick mushrooms there.

Elektrichkas are kept and fixed at special places called depots. Train crews also work from these depots. However, the trains and their crews don’t go back to the depot every day. Instead, they finish their trips at the end stations of their routes.

Regional details

Russia

Elektrichkas for Russian Railways are made in places like Demikhovo, Moscow Oblast, Torzhok, Tver Oblast and Verkhnyaya Pyshma, Sverdlovsk Oblast. These trains connect almost all cities with their nearby areas and surrounding towns. The countryside they pass through is often very beautiful. The elektrichka is a very important way for people to travel in Russia.

Ukraine

Ukraine has many electrified railways and is working to improve its elektrichka system, which is called elektropoyizd in Ukrainian. As of May 2010, almost every part of the country had elektrichka service, except Ivano-Frankivsk and Chernivtsi oblasts, which use diesel trains instead. A typical elektrichka trip is about 100 km (62 mi) long with stops every 5–10 km (3–6 mi), taking about 3½ hours each way. You can travel across the country by switching elektrichka trains two or three times. Tickets are often cheap, but the ride can be uncomfortable.

Many Ukrainian elektrichkas are now used for travel between cities. There are new direct routes like the Kyiv-Rivne line, which is about 300 km (186 mi) long. These newer trains are more comfortable, with fewer stops. Some of the longest routes are Zaporizhzhia–Kharkiv, Dnipro–Simferopol, Odesa–Khmelnytskyi, Odesa–Vinnytsia, Odesa–Kropyvnytskyi, Kyiv–Lutsk, Kyiv–Khmelnytskyi and Kyiv–Shostka, Lviv–Rivne and Lviv–Mukachevo.

Ukrainian railways can make its own elektrichkas, but this is difficult because the service is not very profitable. Some success has come from updating older trains made in Riga by local companies. The elektrichka line in the Debaltseve area uses trains made in Ukraine. Ukrainian elektrichkas are now made in Luhansk at the Luhanskteplovoz factory. New elektrichkas sometimes have special features like a bar or cars just for children, but these are only on big routes. The biggest elektrichka depot in Ukraine, serving Kyiv and nearby areas, is in Fastiv.

In Kyiv, since 2011, regular elektrichka trains have been used for city travel on the Kyiv Urban Electric Train. This project works differently from traditional elektrichkas.

Latvia

See also: Pasažieru Vilciens

The main electric railway in Latvia is in the capital, Riga. The first electric trains went from Riga to Dubulti in the seaside town of Jūrmala in 1950. By 1970, the electric lines went west to Tukums. These trains are mostly used by people who live and work in Riga, and they also go to places like Jelgava, Skulte and Aizkraukle. Some parts of Latvia far from Riga use diesel trains instead. After Latvia became independent, the government removed Soviet signs from many old green trains.

Because plans for a subway for Riga did not happen in the 1980s, the railway is still the quickest way to travel around Riga and nearby areas. In 2022, all electric railway routes in Latvia used different types of ER2 trains, but these will be replaced by 2024.

Estonia

Main article: Elron (rail transit)

The electric railway in Estonia connects the capital Tallinn with nearby areas. The lines go east and west from Tallinn's central station Balti jaam, covering a total of 132 kilometres (82 mi). The line going east goes to Aegviidu. The line going west goes to Keila, where it splits—one branch goes to the harbour town Paldiski and the other to Riisipere. The Paldiski branch splits again at Klooga, with a short line to the former beach town Kloogaranna.

The first electric line in Estonia opened in 1924, going from Tallinn to Nõmme and then to Pääsküla. Work started in 1923, with the government giving 34 million Estonian marks. The technology came from German and Swedish companies like MAN, Siemens-Schuckert, and ASEA.

Before the Soviet occupation in 1940, these electric railways carried 6 million passengers a year, with 20 passenger wagons: four electric cars (M1-M4) and 16 trailers. The M1-M4 cars were taken to the Soviet Union in the first week of the Eastern Front in 1941.

All other electric lines were built during Soviet times by updating regular railway tracks for electricity. ER1 electric trainset trains ran on Estonian electric railways from summer 1975 until the last one stopped in summer 2005. Since 2013, Stadler FLIRT trains have been used on Estonian electric railways.

Social impact

Elektrichkas are an important way for people to travel in post-Soviet countries. They are cheap and easy to use, helping people move between cities and the countryside. In many places, there are not many buses, and cars are not common, so elektrichkas are a reliable choice. They are especially useful for people who sell food from their gardens in city markets.

These trains are popular around big cities like Moscow, Saint Petersburg, and Kyiv because they can avoid traffic. However, heavy traffic can sometimes make the trains late or even cancel some trips. Because of this, some people who can afford it might choose buses or marshrutkas instead. The governments in these countries help keep the cost of riding elektrichkas lower, but sometimes people try to avoid paying by not buying tickets.

In some far areas of Russia where there are no electric trains, shorter trains pulled by diesel engines are used instead. These are called bichevoz.

Cultural significance

The elektrichka is more than just a train; it is a symbol in art and stories from the time of the Soviet Union. A famous song called "The Last Elektrichka" by David Tukhmanov and M. Nozhkin was very popular. Many singers performed it, including Vladimir Makarov, Eduard Hil, Muslim Magomayev, and Vadim Mulerman.

The band Kino also wrote a song named "Elektrichka" for their first album. Movies from the Soviet era, like Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears, sometimes showed scenes on elektrichkas. The novel Moskva-Petushki by Venedikt Erofeev is centered around trips on the elektrichka. The term is also used in songs by the Ukrainian band Braty Hadiukiny.