The President held a working meeting with Minister of Transport Andrei Nikitin. The discussion focused on the implementation of major transport projects, improving the comfort and accessibility of transport services, and training specialists for the sector.
President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon,
Let’s start with the investment projects currently underway in the transport sector?
Minister of Transport Andrei Nikitin: Mr President, allow me to brief you on the key transport projects being implemented this year.
Perhaps the most significant project in Moscow is the renovation of Leningradsky Railway Station. Its passenger seating capacity has tripled, and the station is now ready to accommodate high-speed rail services.
We are also building a military training centre at the Russian University of Transport in Moscow. I believe no such centres have been built for about 30 years. This one will enable us to train highly qualified specialists for the transport sector to meet the needs arising during special periods.
As I have reported previously, our autonomous trucks are already operating not only on the Moscow – St Petersburg motorway but also on the M-12 Vostok motorway.
Vladimir Putin: How far do they travel along the Vostok motorway?
Andrei Nikitin: They currently operate as far as Chelyabinsk, covering a distance of almost 2,000 kilometres. They travel from St Petersburg through Moscow, using the Central Ring Road…
Vladimir Putin: …to Chelyabinsk.
Andrei Nikitin: …to Chelyabinsk, yes.
In addition, acting on your instructions, we drove an autonomous truck all the way to Astana. It crossed the border and continued along Kazakhstan’s roads. So, in principle, the technology works.
Vladimir Putin: Very good.
Andrei Nikitin: In Orenburg, we are building a new airport terminal and a state border crossing point. We are increasing its capacity almost fourfold. It will be a modern, attractive facility.
As I reported earlier, work is continuing on the Bagayevsky hydroelectric complex. We have launched a key phase of the project.
In Crimea, we are upgrading passenger platforms. In the Krasnodar Territory, we have opened the Temryuk and Taman maritime border crossing points.
In the Leningrad Region, we are reconstructing the cargo and passenger border crossing point at Ust-Luga. The terminal’s cargo handling capacity will double.
In the Kaliningrad Region, construction of the Northern Bypass is continuing. We have commissioned the second section of the project and plan to commission the fourth by the end of the year.
In the Vologda Region, we are building a bridge across the Vologda River.
In the Sverdlovsk Region, work is continuing on the Rossiya motorway. In fact, the M-12 motorway will now extend all the way to Tyumen. We have also upgraded the border crossing point at Roshchino Airport in Tyumen, making it more convenient for passengers.
In Siberia and the Far East, the reconstruction of Bratsk Airport is scheduled for completion this year.
In the Primorye Territory, we are implementing a major project that you personally instructed us to prioritise, Mr President: the construction of a bridge across the Tumannaya River and a border crossing point. This will be our first road bridge connecting Russia with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
We have also opened the Pogranichny border crossing point, increasing its capacity almost tenfold. It is now a modern, fully operational facility.
Work is also underway at the Kraskino border crossing point and the Vostochny maritime border crossing point. These projects will provide the infrastructure needed to fully achieve our objectives for expanding trade with Asian countries.
Another specific issue we are addressing is, of course, improving the comfort and accessibility of transport services. We have introduced family-friendly standards and updated the requirements for baby care rooms and play areas. Any transport facility undergoing renovation or new construction now automatically complies with these modern standards.
One challenging issue that remains to be addressed is taxi fares for passengers with children. We are currently running a pilot project with Yandex to find a way to eliminate extra charges for children. We plan to submit the relevant legislation to the State Duma before the end of the year.
We have introduced signage and regulations on free parking for large families.
Separately, as of September 1, new orders have come into force that significantly expand accessibility options for people with disabilities at airports. These include comprehensive free assistance, the free provision of an adjacent seat by airlines, and the free carriage of all necessary assistive devices.
A particularly positive development we have seen in this area is the introduction of biometric identification. It is currently operational at Pulkovo and Sheremetyevo airports, and we are rolling it out to all other airports.
On transport education: acting on your instructions, we established the Caspian Institute of Sea and River Transport named after General Admiral Apraksin in Astrakhan and the College of Mechanical Engineering and Service in Makhachkala; we are also establishing the Azov-Black Sea State Academy of Sea and River Transport in Mariupol. Students from these regions are already pursuing their studies at our transport universities.
We are cooperating with African nations, with 29 universities currently partnering with us. We are training personnel, including for Africa, so that these young people will go on to apply our transport technologies in the future as engineers and decision-makers.
We are training specialists specifically for high-speed rail.
Mr President, the transport sector is functioning smoothly. We are ready to deliver on all our objectives.
Vladimir Putin: Good.
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