The Donets Railway ( uk, Донецька залізниця) is a

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

Donbas The Donbas or Donbass (, ; uk, Донба́с ; russian: Донба́сс ) is a historical, cultural, and economic region in eastern Ukraine. Parts of the Donbas are controlled by Russian separatist groups as a result of the Russo-Ukrai ...

Eastern Ukraine Eastern Ukraine or east Ukraine ( uk, Східна Україна, Skhidna Ukrayina; russian: Восточная Украина, Vostochnaya Ukraina) is primarily the territory of Ukraine east of the Dnipro (or Dnieper) river, particularly Khar ...

. It is one of six rail systems owned and operated by

Ukrainian Railways Ukrainian Railways ( uk, Укрзалізниця, Ukrzaliznytsia, abbreviated as UZ) is a state-owned joint-stock company of rail transport in Ukraine, a monopoly that controls the vast majority of the railroad transportation in the country. I ...

. It is part-owned by the

Ukrainian government The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine ( uk, Кабінет Міністрів України, translit=Kabinet Ministriv Ukrainy; shortened to CabMin), commonly referred to as the Government of Ukraine ( uk, Уряд України, ''Uriad Ukrai ...

, but Russia also has claimed it since the

2014 Russian military intervention in Ukraine The Russo-Ukrainian War; uk, російсько-українська війна, rosiisko-ukrainska viina. has been ongoing between Russia (alongside Russian separatists in Ukraine) and Ukraine since February 2014. Following Ukraine's Revo ...

. Because of that, only part of the Donetsk Railway is operational. In December 2014, a regional branch of

Ukrzaliznytsia Ukrainian Railways ( uk, Укрзалізниця, Ukrzaliznytsia, abbreviated as UZ) is a state-owned joint-stock company of rail transport in Ukraine, a monopoly that controls the vast majority of the railroad transportation in the country. I ...

Donetsk Railway was created and the headquarters was moved from Donetsk to Lyman.

History

The railway was formed in 1953 by merging two others, the

Bakhmut Bakhmut ( uk, Ба́хмут, ) is a city in the Donbas and the administrative centre of Bakhmut Raion in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine. It is located on the Bakhmutka River, about 89 km north of Donetsk city, the administrative center of the o ...

Northern Railway and the

Yasynuvata Yasynuvata ( uk, Ясинува́та, ; russian: Ясиноватая — Yasinovataya) is a city in Donetsk Oblast (province) of south-eastern Ukraine. Administratively, it is incorporated as a city of oblast significance. It also serves as th ...

Southern Railway.

Today

The railway serves Ukraine's largest industrial heartland of

–

Donetsk Donetsk ( , ; uk, Донецьк, translit=Donets'k ; russian: Донецк ), formerly known as Aleksandrovka, Yuzivka (or Hughesovka), Stalin and Stalino (see also: Names of European cities in different languages (C–D), cities' alternat ...

and

Lugansk Luhansk (, ; uk, Луганськ, ), also known as Lugansk (, ; russian: Луганск, ), is a city in what is internationally recognised as Ukraine, although it is administered by Russia as capital of the Luhansk People's Republic (LPR). A ...

, as well as partially the regions of

Zaporizhzhia Zaporizhzhia ( uk, Запоріжжя) or Zaporozhye (russian: Запорожье) is a city in southeast Ukraine, situated on the banks of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. It is the Capital city, administrative centre of Zaporizhzhia Oblast. Zapor ...

Kharkiv Kharkiv ( uk, wikt:Харків, Ха́рків, ), also known as Kharkov (russian: Харькoв, ), is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city and List of hromadas of Ukraine, municipality in Ukraine.Dnipropetrovsk Dnipro, previously called Dnipropetrovsk from 1926 until May 2016, is Ukraine's fourth-largest city, with about one million inhabitants. It is located in the eastern part of Ukraine, southeast of the Ukrainian capital Kyiv on the Dnieper Rive ...

oblasts An oblast (; ; Cyrillic (in most languages, including Russian and Ukrainian): , Bulgarian: ) is a type of administrative division of Belarus, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, and Ukraine, as well as the Soviet Union and the Kingdom o ...

, thus combining in a single transport corridor the cities of

and

Dnipro Dnipro, previously called Dnipropetrovsk from 1926 until May 2016, is Ukraine's fourth-largest city, with about one million inhabitants. It is located in the eastern part of Ukraine, southeast of the Ukrainian capital Kyiv on the Dnieper Rive ...

, the central regions of Ukraine, and is connected to the Russian regions of

Volga The Volga (; russian: Во́лга, a=Ru-Волга.ogg, p=ˈvoɫɡə) is the List of rivers of Europe#Rivers of Europe by length, longest river in Europe. Situated in Russia, it flows through Central Russia to Southern Russia and into the Cas ...

and the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range, have historically ...

. The railway has two border transfer stations on the

Russia–Ukraine border The Russia–Ukraine border is the international state border between the Russian Federation and Ukraine. Over land, the border outlines five oblasts (regions) of Ukraine and five oblasts of the Russian Federation. The modern border issue has be ...

over which it does not have control due to war conditions. Those are Krasna Mohyla (

Chervonopartyzansk Chervonopartyzansk (, ) is a city in Sverdlovsk Municipality, Luhansk Oblast, Ukraine. Population: Geography The city is located in southeastern Luhansk Oblast in the middle of the main Donets drainage divide that separates the watershed of V ...

), Kvashyne,

Ilovaisk Ilovaisk (, ; ) is a city in Khartsyzk municipality, Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine. The city is ''de facto'' under the military occupation of Russia and administered by the Donetsk People's Republic. The city is known as a major regional railroad h ...

, and Lantrativka, Troitske Raion. At its southern extreme, Donetsk Railways has access to the

Sea of Azov The Sea of Azov ( Crimean Tatar: ''Azaq deñizi''; russian: Азовское море, Azovskoye more; uk, Азовське море, Azovs'ke more) is a sea in Eastern Europe connected to the Black Sea by the narrow (about ) Strait of Kerch, ...

through the commercial port of Mariupol, as well as access to the largest industrial center of Ukraine —

Mariupol Mariupol (, ; uk, Маріу́поль ; russian: Мариу́поль) is a city in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine. It is situated on the northern coast (Pryazovia) of the Sea of Azov, at the mouth of the Kalmius River. Prior to the 2022 Russian i ...

. The railway comprises 13% of all track kilometres in Ukraine, but accounts for 47% of all traffic and 36% of the revenue of Ukrainian Railways. Its network covers around . The railway is a key route, serving passengers and several industries, including

coal mine Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...

s, metallurgical, coke-chemical and pipe mills, machine-building and machine-building plants, chemical, light, and food. In December 2014, the Ukrainian government claimed ownership of the Donetsk Railway and the land its serves. All its affiliated companies under the control of the Ukraininian government were transferred to the temporary administration of either Southern Ukrainian Railways or Cisdnieper Railways.

Structure

The Donetsk Railway administrative division consists of three railway transportation directorates all located in Lyman: * Krasno-Lyman * Luhansk * Donetsk Previously, two other directorates also existed: *

* Zhdanov (

) *

Debaltseve Debaltseve or Debaltsevo ( uk, Деба́льцеве ''Debálʼtseve'', ; russian: Деба́льцево ''Debálʼtsevo'') is a city of regional significance in the ''de facto'' Donetsk People's Republic; ''de jure'' Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine. T ...

The main railway hubs of Donetsk railway are: *

* *

(at ) *

Ilovaysk Ilovaisk (, ; ) is a city in Khartsyzk municipality, Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine. The city is ''de facto'' under the military occupation of Russia and administered by the Donetsk People's Republic. The city is known as a major regional railroad h ...

Luhansk Luhansk (, ; uk, Луганськ, ), also known as Lugansk (, ; russian: Луганск, ), is a city in what is internationally recognised as Ukraine, although it is administered by Russia as capital of the Luhansk People's Republic (LPR). A ...

Popasna Popasna (, rus, Попасная, r=Popasnaya) is a ruined city in the Sievierodonetsk Raion, Luhansk Oblast, Ukraine. In 2013, it had almost 22,000 inhabitants. Prior to 2020, it was the administrative center of the former Popasna Raion. In 20 ...

* Kondrashevska-Nova *

Pokrovsk Pokrovsk (russian: Покро́вск) is the name of several inhabited localities in Russia. Modern localities ;Urban localities * Pokrovsk, Sakha Republic, a town under republic jurisdiction in Khangalassky District of the Sakha Republic ;R ...

Kramatorsk Kramatorsk ( uk, Краматорськ, translit=Kramatorsk ) is a city and the administrative centre of Kramatorsk Raion in the northern portion of Donetsk Oblast, in eastern Ukraine. Prior to 2020, Kramatorsk was a City of regional significa ...

Sloviansk Sloviansk ( uk, Слов'янськ, Sloviansk ; russian: Славянск, Slavyansk or ; prior to 1784 – Tor) is a city in the Kramatorsk district of the Donetsk region of Ukraine, the administrative center of the Slovyansk urban commun ...

Kostiantynivka Kostiantynivka ( uk, Костянтинівка, ; russian: Константиновка) is an industrial city in the Donetsk Oblast (province) of eastern Ukraine, on the river. Administratively, it is incorporated as a city of oblast signifi ...

* Mykytivka * Lyman * Chervona Mohyla.

Russian military intervention in Ukraine (2014–present)

Because of the Russian occupation of Ukraine, authority over certain railways and stations was granted to Cisdnieper Railways and Ukrainian Southern Railways. Currently, southern branches are under Cisdnieper Railways' administration, while the northern branches are still operated by the Krasny-Lyman Directorate. In 2016, trains recommenced operation on a separate branch in Luhansk, which had become separated due to the conflict. On 28 May 2016, rail employees of the

Donetsk People's Republic The Donetsk People's Republic ( rus, Донецкая Народная Республика, Donetskaya Narodnaya Respublika, dɐˈnʲetskəjə nɐˈrodnəjə rʲɪˈspublʲɪkə; abbreviated as DPR or DNR, rus, ДНР) is a Territorial ...

demonstrated against not being paid by the

Government of Ukraine The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine ( uk, Кабінет Міністрів України, translit=Kabinet Ministriv Ukrainy; shortened to CabMin), commonly referred to as the Government of Ukraine ( uk, Уряд України, ''Uriad Ukrai ...

.Railway servicemen of "DPR" request that their salary was paid by Ukraine
Espreso. 30 May 2016 On 28 July 2016, it was admitted that the protests were legitimate and the government owed the workers back pay. This involved a process of restructuring, an issue that the Ukrainian government is still trying to resolve.Syzov, V.
How much coal Ukraine exports from the occupied territory? – research (Скільки вугілля Україна вивозить з окупованої території? - дослідження)
Novosti Donbassa. 28 July 2016 A spokesperson stated that all personnel are still considered by the Government of Ukraine to be employees of

(UZ) and has not recognised any other employer.

References

External links

Official website

Donetsk Railway

Lugansk Railway
* * * * * * * {{Railways of Ukrzaliznytsia 1953 establishments in Ukraine Railway companies of Ukraine Companies based in Donetsk Transport in Donetsk Oblast Companies based in Lyman, Ukraine