The concept of "the best train" is very subjective, and each individual passenger includes his own requirements for this concept: speed, comfort, cost, etc. It was Russian Railways that commissioned several different trains that differ in comfort, operating costs and speed.
Peregrine Falcon (from the German company Siemens)
The most popular high-speed electric train in Russia. The first flight was carried out at the end of 2009 on the route Moscow - St. Petersburg. Today the train from Moscow runs in two directions: to St. Petersburg (5 trains) and to Nizhny Novgorod (2 trains).
An electric train can reach speeds of up to 300 km / h, however, the running speed on Russian roads is considered to be 200-250 km / h (in some sections - 160 km / h). Each train has 10 cars, with a total of 506 seats.
The fare on the Moscow - St. Petersburg line is 2320 rubles in economy class and 4200 rubles in business class. On the line Moscow - Nizhny Novgorod - 1080 and 4650, respectively.
Allegro (from the Finnish company Alstom)
The train, well known to the residents of St. Petersburg, is operated by both the Russian Railways and the Finnish company Suomen Valtion Rautatiet. It has been operating on the route Helsinki - St. Petersburg since May 2011. The journey takes 3 hours 50 minutes.
Allegro travels in Russia at an average speed of 200 km / h, in Finland - 220 km / h. The train consists of 7 cars with a total of 352 seats (+ 2 seats for people with disabilities) in each train.
The fare is 84 euros in a 2nd class carriage and 104 euros in a 1st class carriage.
ES Swallow (from the German company Siemens Desiro Rus)
The most comfortable high-speed electric train, running mainly in the Krasnodar Territory, was put into operation in 2013, for the 2014 Olympics. The purchase of trains was carried out in 2009 in the amount of 410 million euros. The manufacturer allocated another 500 million euros for their maintenance for 40 years.
A total of 54 trains have been purchased for Russia. Each train consists of 5 cars (with a large passenger traffic, a train of two coupled trains leaves the trip). Each carriage has 409 seats (+ 4 seats for people with disabilities), but the demand for travel on the train is so high that passengers agree to stand in the narrow aisles of an unsuitable carriage. The average driving speed in Russia is 160 km / h.
Swift (from the Spanish company Patentes Talgo S. L)
Since 2015, the train has been running on the route Moscow - Nizhny Novgorod. The total ride time is 3 hours 45 minutes.
Each train has from 7 to 11 cars. The longest train has 299 passenger seats. The fare is from 1150 rubles ("luxury" - 7570 rubles). Only intermediate cars were purchased from the manufacturer. Russian Railways uses the Russian EP20 electric locomotive as a locomotive.
Double-deck cars (Tver Carriage Works)
Since 2013, a train with double-decker carriages (No. 103) has been running. Used on the routes Moscow - Adler, Moscow - St. Petersburg.
Each ordinary carriage has 64 berths (32 places in a SV-class carriage). The fare is 7540 rubles. (in a double-decker car) and 7140 p. (in a one-story carriage). The compartment carriage has 64 berths, the SV-class carriage - 32.
Sokol-250 (Russia)
An electric train that never entered the route. During its development, the speed of the train was announced to be up to 350 km / h, but in 2001, during the tests of a prototype, the maximum speed for Russian railways reached only 236 km / h.
In addition, about 25 shortcomings were noted, the main part of which related to design flaws: tightness of cars, overheating of brake discs, unreliability of the brake system, and others.
Today, part of the experimental train "Sokol-250" is on the sidings of the Central Museum of the October Railway.
