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Russia suspends direct rail services to Balkan region

By Nicky Gardner and Susanne Kries |

News

Tisza Express at Budapest Keleti station (photo © Attila Vörös).

Tisza Express at Budapest Keleti station (photo © Attila Vörös).

The chill in relations between many European countries and the Russian Federation is beginning to show in patterns of rail service across the continent.

Russia today announced the suspension of all direct rail services to EU destinations in the Balkan region. This also affects some non-EU cities (such as Belgrade). The ostensible reason for these services being axed is a drop in passenger traffic in recent weeks. While RZD Russian Railways suggests that the withdrawal of these trains is not necessarily permanent, no date has been given for their reinstatement. It is also worth noting that the trains affected all run via Kiev to reach the European Union. The fall-off in passenger numbers between Kiev and Moscow is surely also a consideration in the withdrawal of these trains - indeed, that's quite possibly the key issue here. It would be incorrect to infer that the suspension of these trains is the direct result of the currently fragile relations between Russia and the EU. The 'Ukraine factor' probably features more heavily in Russian thinking.

It is however worth noting that earlier this month RZD announced a temporary suspension of the daytime service from St Petersburg to Tallinn. No trains will run between the two cities for a seven-week spell from later this month. However, in that case, a definite date was given for the resumption of train services, namely 18 December.

The services affected by today’s announcement are detailed below. These trains involve several European railway administrations. For example the Moscow to Budapest service also carries Ukrainian carriages from Kiev to Budapest. We do not yet know whether any element of these services will continue.

Moscow to Budapest

Train nos. 15 and 16 (often known as the Tisza) which run from Moscow to Budapest and vice versa.

This train also carries through carriages to Belgrade and Bratislava — and during the summer also through carriages to Skope (Macedonia), to Zagreb and Split (both in Croatia) and to Ljubljana and Koper (both in Slovenia). The train has also on occasions, though not in this past year, carried through carriages to Montenegro and even Greece.

The last departure for Budapest from Moscow will be on Friday 12 December. The last departure of the through RZD carriages to Russia from Budapest will be on Sunday 14 December.

Moscow to Sofia

Train nos. 59 and 60 (often known as the Bulgaria Express) which run from Moscow to Sofia and vice versa.

This train serves two EU capitals, namely Bucharest and Sofia. During the summer it also carried through carriages to the Black Sea resorts of Burgas and Varna, both of which are popular destinations for Russian tourists.

The last departure for Sofia from Moscow will be on Friday 12 December. The last departure of the through RZD carriages to Russia from Sofia will be on Sunday 14 December.

Copyright © Nicky Gardner and Susanne Kries. All rights reserved.
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About The Authors

Nicky Gardner and Susanne Kries

Nicky and Susanne manage hidden europe, a Berlin-based editorial bureau that supplies text and images to media across Europe. Together they edit hidden europe magazine. Nicky and Susanne are dedicated slow travellers and the authors of the book Europe by Rail: The Definitive Guide. The 17th edition of that book was published in 2022 and reprinted in July 2023. You'll find a list of outlets that sell the book on this website.

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