The Russian Railways (RZD) have submitted plans to the Russian government to build a 1080-km high-speed line from St Petersburg via Moscow to Nizhny Novgorod, according to Kommersant newspaper. The proposal supersedes earlier plans to build a 762-km high-speed line from Moscow via Nizhny Novgorod to Kazan.

The cost of the new project is estimated at 2.29 trillion RUB (32.3 bn EUR), of which 1.65 trillion RUB is for the 659-km St Petersburg – Moscow section, 530 bn RUB for the 421-km section from Moscow to Nizhny Novgorod. To keep costs down, high-speed trains will operate over existing tracks to reach the centres of the three cities. The annual operating costs are estimated at 47.2 bn RUB.

It is envisaged that the Moscow – Nizhny Novgorod section would open first in 2024 and would carry 16.8 million passengers a year. Opening of the Moscow – St Petersburg line would follow in the fourth quarter of 2026. Traffic is estimated at 30.6 million passengers a year, with the current Sapsan high-speed service continuing to operate on the conventional line between the two cities.

RZD Chairman, Mr Oleg Belozyorov, and the CEO of Siemens Mobility, Ms Sabrina Susson, signed a memorandum of cooperation on August 28 regarding the high-speed project. The agreement covers design and consultation, production and supply of equipment, investment and financing.

RZD currently uses upgraded conventional rail lines to operate the country's two domestic high-speed services: a fleet of Sapsan (Siemens Velaro RUS rolling stock, speeds up to 250 km/h) trains on the Moscow – St Petersburg route, with one daily return service from St. Petersburg to Nizhny Novgorod, and a fleet of Strizh (Talgo 9 stock, speeds up to 200 km/h) tilting trains on the Moscow – Nizhny Novgorod route. Similar Talgo 9 sets, with variable gauge, are also used by RZD on the Moscow – Berlin route, while tilting Pendolino rolling stock connects St. Petersburg and Helsinki as Allegro trains, managed by the Russian-Finnish JV Karelia Trains.