On 21 June 2020 a solemn ceremony was held at the railway station Svetlogorsk on Berezina to open the regular passenger service of electric trains on the Svetlogorsk – Zhlobin – Minsk route with the participation of President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko.

During the ceremony, Head of the Byelorussian Railway Vladimir Morozov informed President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko about “The development of the Byelorussian Railway and prospects of its electrification”.

The opening of regular EMU passenger traffic on the route Svetlogorsk – Zhlobin – Minsk is aimed at strengthening transport connection and intensifying the development of Gomel and Minsk regions, improving the quality of services for passengers.

The citizens of Svetlogorsk have been provided with an opportunity to travel every day in the morning and evening to the capital and back by the comfortable electric trains. To organise a transport network for passengers between Svetlogorsk, Zhlobin and Minsk, a timetable for business-class trains of regional service has been developed. The service will be provided by modern European-level EMUs of EPR series which have been in operation on the Byelorussian Railway since 2011 and have already gained popularity among passengers.

The EPR-series EMUs being in operation on regional business-class lines consist of 5 coaches, which can accommodate 302 passengers. Among the advantages of the train is a lowered floor that allows passengers to get on and off quickly, as well as bright and spacious cabins with an air conditioning system. To reduce the heat loss when getting on and off, passengers open the doors themselves by pressing the button.

Inside the electric train there are soft seats installed with a ‘3+2’ layout with additional shelves for hand luggage and bigger luggage. One of the coaches is provided with a multifunctional area for the disabled persons, as well as for passengers with strollers, bicycles and large-size luggage. The video information systems for passengers and video surveillance are installed inside the coaches of the electric train, the Wi-Fi network is arranged, and the electrical sockets are also fitted under the seats for charging portable electrical devices.

Train No. 754 Svetlogorsk on Berezina – Minsk departed from Svetlogorsk on 21 June at 19:04 and arrived in the capital of Belarus at 21:44. From Minsk the train first departed on 26 June at 15:50 and arrived in Svetlogorsk at 18:47. Further on, these trains run on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

The organisation of passenger transportation on a daily basis on the route Svetlogorsk – Zhlobin – Minsk has been made possible thanks to train No. 756. Train No. 756 Minsk – Svetlogorsk on Berezina departed for the first time from Minsk on 21 June at 20.48 and arrived in Svetlogorsk at 23.47. On its way back, the train departed from Svetlogorsk on 22 June at 05.01 and arrived in Minsk at 07.53.

Along the route the train stops at the stations of Zhlobin, Bobruisk, Asipovichi-1 and Pukhovichi. The travel documents (tickets) for these trains can be booked or purchased by using the universal Web-platform “Passenger Services” on the official website of the Byelorussian Railway (pass.rw.by), the mobile application “BC. My Train”, as well as at the railway ticket offices.

At the same time, in order to strengthen the transport network in Gomel region, two pairs of trains of regional economy-class lines (with ER9 electric trains) have been additionally scheduled for the route Gomel – Svetlogorsk – Gomel starting from 21 June: train No. 6459/6460 runs every day and train No. 6457/6458 runs on Saturdays and Sundays.

The opening of regular electric trains service on the route Svetlogorsk – Zhlobin – Minsk has become possible thanks to the completion of electrification on the route Zhlobin-Padoĺski – Svetlogorsk on Berezina. This is one of the stages of the implementation of an investment project for the electrification of Zhlobin-Kalinkavičy-Barbarov section with the total length of 141 km, which is planned to be completed by the end of 2021. The implementation of this project will make it possible to increase the share of electrified sections to 25% of the total length of railway lines and to organise in the future the movement of passenger and freight trains with electric locomotive traction throughout this section.

The electrification project for the railway line Zhlobin – Kalinkavičy – Barbarov is being implemented together with the Chinese partners. A construction contract for the project “Electrification of the Gomel-Zhlobin-Asipovičy and Zhlobin-Kalinkavičy sections. 3^rd stage. Section Zhlobin – Kalinkavičy" was signed between the Byelorussian Railway and the China National Electric Import & Export Corporation (CUEC). The works are financed from the own funds of the Byelorussian Railway (15% of the amount of contracts) and the loan assets of the Export-Import Bank of China (85% of the amount of contracts).

At the stations and sections on the route Svetlogorsk on Berezina – Kalinkavičy – Barbarov, the planned works are carried out to reconstruct the power supply networks, as well as to complete the construction of communications networks and remote control systems of technological power supply equipment. The installation of overhead catering supports at the section Kalinkavičy – Barbarov has been completed and the construction of two traction substations is continued.

It is expected that after the electrification completion at the Zhlobin-Kalinkavičy-Barbarov section, the emissions of pollutants into the atmosphere will decrease by 900 tons per year. At the same time the electrification will help to reduce the operating costs for infrastructure and traction rolling stock, and above all, decrease the costs for purchasing the diesel fuel.

Electrification is one of the most important investment projects of the Byelorussian Railway. In 1963, the first route of the Byelorussian railway connecting Minsk and Aliechnavičy was electrified, and since 2011, the length of electrified sections on the Byelorussian mainline routes has increased by 277 kilometers having reached 1228 km today or 22.5% of the total length of railway lines. The sections Gomel – Zhlobin – Asipovičy and Molodechno – Gudagai – state border with Lithuania have been electrified.

It is also planned to fully electrify by 2030 the sections that are intensively used for cargo traffic in order to maximize the economic efficiency of the transportation of goods and passengers with the use of the electric locomotive traction.