Transportation

Russia's vast size and the great distances that often separate sources of raw materials and foodstuffs from consuming areas place a heavy burden on the transport system. One result has been the continuing dominance of the railways, which account for about 90 percent of the country's freight turnover (60 percent if pipelines are included) and half of all passenger movement. Nevertheless, the rail network is a very open one, and its density varies regionally: highest in the Northwest, Central, and Central Black Earth regions; lowest in Siberia and the Far East. Indeed, east of the Urals the term “network” is a misnomer, since the system consists of only a few major trunk routes (e.g., the Trans-Siberian Railroad and Baikal-Amur Mainline) with feeder branches to sites of economic importance. Russian railways are among the world's leading freight carriers, the line from the Kuznetsk to the Urals being especially prominent.

Apart from highways linking the major cities of European Russia, the road system is underdeveloped and carries only a tiny fraction of the freight. A much greater volume, in fact, is carried by inland waterways. Although the greatest volume is carried on the Volga system, river transport is most vital in areas devoid of railways.

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In addition to its vital role in foreign trade, maritime transport also has some importance in linking the various regions of Russia, particularly those that face the Arctic seaboard. Traffic on the Arctic Ocean route is seasonal.

Air transport plays an increasingly important role. Russian airlines carry only a minute fraction of all freight, chiefly high-value items to and from the remote parts of Siberia, where aircraft are sometimes the only means of transport. Airlines are responsible for nearly one-fifth of all passenger movement. Aeroflot, the largest airline in the world, formerly the state airline of the Soviet Union, carries more than 80 million passengers a year.

SOME FACTS ABOUT NOVOSIBIRSK

«city, administrative centre of Novosibirsk oblast (province) аnd the chief city of western Siberia, in south-central Russia. It lies along the Ob River where the latter is crossed by the Trans-Siberian Railroad. It developed after the village of Krivoshchekovo on the left bank was chosen as the crossing point of the Ob for the Trans-Siberian Railroad in 1893. The settlement was known variously as Gusevka or Aleksandrovsky, but in 1895 it was renamed Novonikolayevsky in honour of the accession of Tsar Nicholas II. The bridge was completed in 1897, and in 1903 town status was conferred.»

from Encyclopædia Britannica 2006 Ultimate Reference Suite DVD

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