The Trans-Siberian, the longest railway in the world, for upgrading or collapse?
The world’s most famous transport route between Europe and Asia is 100 years old. China, Japan and Western countries are looking for cheaper alternatives routes. One possibility is the Arctic.
Moscow (AsiaNews) – This month, the Trans-Siberian railway (popularly known as Trans-Sib) celebrates its first 100 years. However, Russia has no official plans to mark this occasion for the world’s longest railway (9,288 km) due to its advanced age and the country’s economic woes.
The fabled Trans-Sib that inspires travellers and artists from around the world, is badly maintained that some wonder whether it might have reached the end of its usable life.
Plans to upgrade the line are in the works, but corruption and lack of a transparent legal culture have forced the authorities to put them off.
Earlier this year, the Russian Accounting Chamber discovered that Russian Railways had spent only 3.7 billion of the 50 billion rubles it had been given for rebuilding the Trans-Sib and other rail lines in Siberia. The rest it put out at interest, apparently deciding that was a more profitable venture than rebuilding the railways as it was supposed to. As a result, investigators found that no work had been done at 30 of the 88 sites where it had been scheduled.
Another factor that might lead to the decommissioning of the railway is that Russia’s trading partners want a less expensive trade link between Europe and Asia. China, Japan and Europe might opt for alternatives routes or go for the Arctic, which is increasingly ice-free as a result of global warming.
Despite this, Russian authorities plan to restart upgrading the Trans-Sib and and the related Baikal-Amur Mainline (4,234 km) next year. But if they abandon the project, Russia’s economic clout in Asia would suffer a major blow.
Still, the Trans-Siberian carries 30 per cent of the country’s annual exports. Mikhail Abyzov, the Russian Federation’s minister for open government, expressed support for upgrading the line, which he considers an important goal for the government.
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