Customer relations
Passengers
The primary objective of Russian Railways is to provide all Russian regions with affordable passenger transportation. Along with suburban transportation comprising multimodal routes, the Company is developing long-haul passenger services, including high-speed and ultra high-speed transportation between metropolitan areas. The Company’s priorities include continuous improvement of customer experience, development of new products and services, digitalisation, and creation of a comfortable transport environment affordable to all categories of passengers.
- We actively develop and offer tourists various options for travelling the country. In 2021, passengers could choose from 22 itineraries.
- We continued our intensive efforts to safeguard passengers’ health and curb the spread of COVID-19 at all passenger facilities and trains.
- We launched new comfortable Lastochka routes, including cross-border ones.
- The Company expanded the geography of double-decker trains.
- We launched 14 new suburban routes.
- We commissioned the new Vostochny railway station (Cherkizovo terminal).
- Russian Railways consistently follows its policy for restoring and preserving the architectural and historical appearance of railway stations.
In 2021, adherence to departure schedules for passenger and suburban trains stood at 99.37% and 99.15%, respectively.
COVID-19 response
The Company took steps to shield passengers from epidemiological risks, raise their awareness, and enhance standards of comfort.
- We installed temperature screening points at the station entrances, developed schemes for dividing passenger flows within the premises of railway stations, and arranged “green corridors” to facilitate access for groups of children.
- We allocated dedicated premises for the temporary placement of passengers with symptoms of contagious diseases.
- We refunded unused tickets (including non-refundable ones) to all passengers who cancelled their trips during the lockdown, while also reducing the cancellation fees by 100 times.
- We introduced quick customer response tools and expanded the range of remote travel management opportunities.
Through federal and regional mass media, the Company launched regular awareness-raising campaigns to inform general public about its compliance with applicable improvement orders and requirements, and to share the details of its pandemic response.
Development of railway station infrastructure
In 2021, the Company renovated and repaired 114 railway station infrastructure facilities (54 railroad stations and 60 passenger platforms with a total floor area of 126,000 sq m).
Russian Railways completed the renovation of the Kiyevsky railway station, reconstructed the Petrozavodsk and Kirov stations, modernised the Yekaterinburg, Moskovsky (St Petersburg) and Nizhny Novgorod stations, repaired the buildings of the Tulun, Irkutsk Passazhirsky, Cheremkhovo, Shimanovsk, and Murmansk stations, beautified the Samara station’s premises and repaired the station’s facilities, and renovated waiting areas at 23 railway stations.
The Company also completed a large-scale revamp of the Arzamas-2 railway station building. For passengers with reduced mobility, the station now has an induction system for the hearing-impaired and a special ticket window.
Finally, Russian Railways completed the reconstruction of the Petrozavodsk railway station, an officially recognised cultural heritage site.
Customer service
The Company aims to offer its customers a new level of service quality in a timely manner. Russian Railways Customer Support Centre provides information on the Company’s passenger services.
We are constantly upgrading our sales systems. In 2021, the share of e-tickets sold through digital channels came in at 69%, up 6.2% y-o-y.
In 2021, the Company placed great emphasis on the development of new services for passengers, including digital ones.
- Food Delivery to the Train Car is now available at 52 railway stations. Passengers can place an order when they purchase their ticket on the Russian Railways website or through the RZD Passengers mobile app (available for iOS and Android). Another option is to add an order to the ticket purchased earlier by going to your Personal Account or the Add Services to the Ticket section. Passengers can use this option even after boarding the train (by scanning the QR code displayed on information stickers in long-haul trains).
- Sapsan trains implemented a facial recognition payment technology at their quick service restaurants; Student, a new conceptual tariff, was introduced to allow university students to buy unsold train seats at a discount; recently developed interactive educational courses for passengers (PROgress towards Success) were added to Sapsan's infotainment system.
- Sapsan trains introduced Business Travel Passes, a new marketing offering for legal entities enabling them to buy travel documents through non-cash payments where the required amounts are debited from the unified personal account. On top of that, Sapsan trains expanded their passenger insurance coverage to include such risks as train delays, loss of personal belongings, third-party liability, missing connections to other transport services, etc.
Given the growing demand for domestic tourism in 2021, Russian Railways started promoting new tourist routes combining a rail ride and an excursion, as well as rail tours by hotel trains. At the same time, the Company preserved its traditional retro tours on steam locomotives. 2021 saw the launch of a new tourist route – Pskov–Veliky Novgorod–Rybinsk–Yaroslavl.
RZD Bonus loyalty programme
RZD Bonus is Russian Railways’ loyalty programme that enables long-haul passengers to earn points by making trips and exchange them for tickets. Currently, RZD Bonus counts more than 7 m members.
In 2021, the Company:
- attracted over 1 m loyalty programme participants;
- carried out more than 30 marketing activities;
- implemented 13 promotions for RZD Bonus participants;
- grew the audience of its Discount Railcar telegram channel to 150,000 people (more than 37 times).
Russian Railways’ mobile app for passengers
In addition to the website and free 24/7 telephone counselling service (
The RZD Passengers mobile app has all a traveller would need and more:
- long-haul and suburban train schedules;
- tickets sold for long-haul and suburban trains;
- refund for tickets purchased via the website or mobile app;
- help information about railway stations;
- train running status information;
- Russian Railways’ help information and news.
Care for people with reduced mobility
Russian Railways attaches particular importance to the accessibility of railway services for disabled people and other groups of passengers with reduced mobility.
2021 results
111 railway stations (9%) and 297 transport stops (3%) were outfitted for accessibility. Other facilities were partially accessible, with functional areas made available for certain categories of passengers with reduced mobility.
Long-haul trains included administrative locomotive traction cars specifically designed for passengers with disabilities, with 91% of administrative cars accessible to such people. The share of suburban electric trains adapted for people with reduced mobility was increased to 22%. 100% of high-speed and ultra high-speed passenger trains were fully accessible.
The Company also expanded the coverage of its Mobility Assistance Centre from 1,500 to 10,000 railway stations and transport stops. The number of passengers with reduced mobility serviced by the Company exceeded 227,000 people. Russian Railways’ website has a dedicated section for passengers with disabilities or reduced mobility where they can find a railway station accessibility map containing information on the accessibility of functional areas for the main categories of passengers with reduced mobility featuring photos and the necessary explanations.
Video information terminals were installed at 194 railway stations, enabling the servicing of hearing-impaired passengers, including in the Russian sign language. Geo-information service software is currently being configured at 40 railway stations to help passengers with reduced mobility find accessible and barrier-free routes.
Accessibility improvement plans
In 2016, the Company started assessing the accessibility of transport infrastructure facilities, rail vehicles and transportation services for people with disabilities. Based on the assessments, Russian Railways determines the current accessibility level and works out ways to improve it. The Company developed a roadmap focusing on the steps that need to be taken to enhance the accessibility of its facilities, rolling stock and services for disabled passengers.
Monitoring of service quality
Since 2017, the Company has been surveying the satisfaction of railway passengers with the quality of provided
Passenger surveys are conducted in the form of personal interviews. The questions are grouped to match the eight types of services provided by Russian Railways to its passengers. The surveys are conducted on a quarterly basis, i.e. four times a year.
As per the recent surveys, the most important criteria for passengers assessing the quality of services include the following:
- long-haul routes – cost of services, comfort during travel, and technical condition of the train;
- suburban routes – train speed, cost of services, and safety.