GEOGRAPHICAL ANALYSIS OF STATE POLICY ON RUSSIAN RAILWAY TRANSPORT

Abstract

Aim. The purpose of the paper is a geographical analysis of the state policy of the Russian Federation, which carries out activities in the field of railway transport, involving modernization, reconstruction and construction of new railway lines and related infrastructure. Methodology. The main research methods include comparative-analytical, statistical-mathematical and geoinformational techniques, which make it possible to visualize territorial imbalances in the development of railway transport in Russia and to identify its main geographical problems. Results. The main documents regulating the further development of railway transport of the Russian Federation are analyzed. The political, economic and social aspects of the development of railway transport in Russia in the territorial dimension are highlighted. A pattern is identified: in the regions of new and pioneer development, projects are being implemented to build new sections of railways necessary for the development of mineral deposits and the formation of a supporting transport framework. In the old-age regions, new construction is associated with the efficiency of using the existing transport network and with the optimization of existing cargo flows. In the field of passenger transportation, the role and importance of large agglomerations, as well as correspondence between the largest cities, transport hubs, i.e. centers for the formation of passenger flows, is increasing. At the same time, the process of forming transport isolated territories that have partially or completely lost suburban railway communication (primarily the Non-Black Earth region of the European part of Russia) is traced. Research implications. The study will help supplement theoretical ideas about the current state and prospects for the development of railway transport in Russia. The revealed spatial patterns of the location of the railway transport network and its management system can be used in subsequent complex economic and geographical studies, as well as in the development of schemes for the territorial development of Russia as a whole and its individual regions.

Keywords

• railway transport of Russia
• state transport policy
• suburban transport
• agglomeration transport systems
• regional transport system