Welding of first train for HSR to begin in Sept - Russian Transport Ministry

MOSCOW. Aug 27 (Interfax) - Welding of the first train for the high-speed railway (HSR) is expected to begin in September, Transport Minister Andrei Nikitin said in an interview with the Rossiya-24 television channel.

"The uniqueness of the project lies in the fact that it is fully implemented using Russian technologies - both construction technologies and the technologies of the train itself. Moreover, the welding of the first train will begin in September," Nikitin said.

"It [the project] is being implemented actively; the deadlines set by the president are quite achievable to date, and we are on schedule," he said.

The Moscow - St. Petersburg HSR will pass through the territory of six Russian regions, connecting Moscow, St. Petersburg and the Moscow, Tver, Novgorod and Leningrad regions. The length of the line will be 679 kilometers. With the launch of the HSR, the travel time between Moscow and St. Petersburg will be 2 hours and 15 minutes. The launch of the line is planned for 2028. It is expected that at least 23 million people will use the Moscow-St. Petersburg HSR annually. The total cost of the project, including the creation of infrastructure and the purchase of rolling stock, is estimated at 2.1 trillion rubles.