USSR RAILROADS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00809A000600040572-3
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 5
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: July 19, 2011
• Sequence Number: 572
• Publication Date: October 19, 1953
• Content Type: REPORT

CLASSIFICATION CONFIDER .LAL /SECURITY-TN
CENTRALINTELLIGF4Cf AGENCY
INFORMATION REPORT
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1. R"adbeds
C. Rails
(1) Typo wad weight.
a. L L test veipt. Used for switches, spm and plaose vhere
vratfic it very list.
b. Avesnp wipt for avernp use.
c. Ssavlest; about 30 feet long; could nmport about 200 tons
plus.
(2) Condition.
Pair,
(3) Rsplaassleat rats.
now dns to steel scarcity.
(4) Dorstle production.
as so known. All rail sods in m.
b. Several rail plants in Dom Dula. Too vm at BULL= and
Makeevks.
(S) isporto.
I knew of now.
8. mail lasteninp.
(1) Typo.
19604 steel spikes similar to those used in Os=NEW and the US.
(2) Condition.
dean:
(3) Replacement rate.
Army, of three years or wore.
(4) Domestic *060tift.
a. Wowal `
>Lat koDaa.
b. Location or prodaation.
f14e1 OYmirasbn:itt osatera.
(S) z s
sot knana.
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CO IAL/SECURM IIF Ifl(ATION
-2-
C. Ties.
(1) Type.
(2),-:.mat.
T116 section gang Used picks, shovels, hemmers, spikes, ties,
sad ' J Ivgs.
iWfl*W51icW1T ; iiAS'I01
Treited oak or pine.
(2) Condition.
Excellent.
(3) Replacement rate.
avert' three years, depending on traffic.
(4) Domestic production
a. Amount
Not known.
b. Sources
Timber regions of USSR.
(5) Imports.
Pose.
D. Ballast.
(1) Type.
Main lines used crushed stone or gravel. Little used lines
used earth or sand.
(2) Sours.,
-N arrest available.
E. Bridges
(1) Location and type of construction.
-.''. Lars bridges ?over large rivers were of steel' and concrete
(bouMSnconstruction. 'blood, stone orconer^te only were used
over and stresY. Usually, if the 'bridges were
to be over rive meters, steel and concrete would be used.
I recall one bridge over the Vo.tgi River at Saratov; one of the
largest I ever saw. It is 10 spans long, about one kilometer.
It is of steel construction on a concrete base. It carries
a double track. I do not know the height above the rister.
(2) Source of materials.
All materials were of Soviet manufacture.
F. Tunnels.
(1) In the Roth Caacasas there were three tunnels in a row on the
railroad between Eovorossisk and Krasnodar. They were not far
from Eovorossisk and were between the stations of Lineynaya and
Tukelnaya. The longest was about 3/4 of a kilometer in length;
the other tco about 1/2 a kilometer.
O. Classification Yards.
(1) Location.
1ver7 major railroad center has a classification yard with
the me
(2) fimga fiat. Important near the largest cities.
(3) system The ~'t~uall,- used the hum method.
All likes would center in on a hump and can would be
(h) Cagaedtyted to the proper line fr*A this hump.
The largest yord I over saw, was at Odessa, which could
aoa~.date 100 trains, more or less.
(5) Operation at a Given Date.
I kmsv that Oeessa could handle 100 trains a day.
E. Bose" Maiat.aaaoe.
(1) condition..
Posse because of shortages. Quality of material was good,
(2) L hswsrer.
bor. ,
There were about 15 to 2D on assiprd to divided sections.
look Mattes was about 10 kilo eters UK. These von took
swore of:raile,==tiss,=ballast
'kai ees maotica in` the
. fl
best possible cosditiom.'
~2bjor repairs doe to accidents.
wasioats, step were koaltait by special be^s'amd equipment.
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25X1
I., Specific Railroad Line.
(1) Term+,n+
Petropavlovsk to Balkhash
(2; Roadbed
Tne line was inproceso of construction.
a sand, ballast was used, There va:j no stone available.
workmanship was, eacrificea.
(3) Single or Double Track
Single
(k) Amount and Type, of Traffic
Because the project was tieing carried out in a hurry, good
Construction, materials only were carried
0
1r the basic construction.
e. Stations
.
!!tale. Nary railroad side lines and nets were to
1
of being developed. I heazt that it was rich in various
between Akmolinsk W Karaganda and smelting plants were
Akmolinek, Karaganda, and Balkhaah. Massyere for coal U
to be used to transport fish and salt from Lake Balhhash.
(5) structures
a. Bridges.
All bradrjes were fairly small and were made of wood.
b. tunnels.
NOAS,
c. Clavs1fication Yards.
None
d. Sidings.
to permanent structures had been erected
Lone knows,.
g. Open Storage.
floal and are at Karaganda.
h. Tank Fares.
None observed.
r would like to point out that forced labor was used to construct this
lime. Thousands of workers died from the sever*wthsr, owes i rk Sad lack
of proper food.
f. Warehouses.
TM construction averald about two miles per day.
Mgalar railroad construction sgvip^ant was used. ,Poor mommgemeat,and
lash of eoordimmtins of effort, ha now, resulted in poor Mnwk. T ere
was eomstast pesmmmes by the PITD erwrseers to hurry i the project. They
Moeid !ks promiss? or fzsedos to, the peiseaswm is on attic to at more
wort out of them, Physically this us Mere is MLs of is the they
did.
s.~1"Us Mme bsimg ismLLl is-pulse of tie old tslsPsphic sad
'Ajis:_ w Bo ss oar; art 1W '1*" bevel
i7. sastWattea rmaMtwss ~. main 33aas.
A, -his
usiri Mo tppu of bat been; lam two?as3o cas37106 90 metric tons,
?~??+i ..~+~.?{?1 w- wrest .wee.: liieawt wee! mlpe. Or
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Coal and'ore cafe were Weds of metal and had four axles. They
carried about 70 metric tons.
Flat 006.:w?re,madeav11L1our`axles and carried. about 80 tons.
There were two types of tank cars. one bad two axles and.
25 tons and the'other had four axles and carried
carried 0 about bout
about 6o tons~
D. Freight Car Maintenance.
Capital maintenance was required every three years. Bach lams
classification yard had an inspection teas itich pulled cars
for capital maintenance according to the date marked on the car
of the last capital maintenance.
An inspection was madeamry time the train was to,
move by a member of the crew. If minor repairs Vi' needed they
were usually made than and there. Brakes, bearings, axles and
wheels were carefully checked.
Repairs to wooden parts of cars, and painting anaited Capital
maintenance. This work was not done as it was needed.
I would estimate that every three years a car would travel an
average of 50,000 kilometers.
Freight cars were usually mistreated. The railroad industry
continuously tries to move all freight possible to establish
records. The false Stakhanovite 9g rsa%aee etermellyy being
brought to the attention of the working man. lowsver, no one
wants to assume responsibility for anything. There is, than,
a gamersl lack of interest. Results are achieved only through
the use of drastic methods and misuse of equipment is common.
nosy, was an unneer working out of
sew . e race ved the Order of Lenin for breaking speed
records and moving freight quick3y. Three months after he
received the Order of Lenin he was sentenced to ten years in
prison for an accident.iniurred while speeding.
If one is careful and cautious, one is called a.cosard and a
reactionary. If one is daring and an accident results, am goes
to prison. Inefficiency, therefore, is the result.
D.
Cows tiom of Lubricants.
Not known.
B.
Retirement Rate of Freight Cars.
Cars are used to the utmost and are retired only when they can
no longer be repaired. This averages about D Years.
F.
a.
Bepair'Shops for Freight (bars.
Bach railroad eystsa has its own
are special shops and the freigh
r fairs.
Soarce]]epode. of Freight Cars..
(1)
repair shop.
t car manufrotu
tb n, too,, there
elft,planti for
r 'theme are very fee foreipe?made arm. lose ? we of Deanna
UK, or US manadsctmre and we of several tpp,S; I arr tsk,
boa, flat, coal. Most of them was ieyortid at, tin bmgia?
sing of the Soviet system before industry Wt undeKwy.
(2) Domestic.
Domestic pe'odmetiom Led in the Bomrfdsre Ukraine;
Lusansk and Samar c, j ?- , nor ms=s are snide in hsslograd.
Th prod~eet~en figra~as awls unbosom to aae
lit gleam f ysiprf m*Iypeat. Sigma. is velraoua statiooa wd to abated
lit.-,*sdplt t~l ` v el, is a lasnary~.,: -
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B. Metal Barr were predominant.
C. The average length was 12, to 14 aetc?.'e. They had no upholstered
D. Passengsr.orrr vsre repaired at'' the weight car repair, centers
E. Schedules trace very poor because of the priority g?ven certain
freight trains. .
VII. Traffic.
A'. Annual Tons ' Carrier}:
d figures were not available carried ar
Classified
of, l., coy '
average 1,000 tong, 50 kilometers s a ertaia trains
carried as such as 2,500,0 tons the same distance.
B. Composition of Freight Traffic.
I do not know any figures except to point out an average
oil train had. between 10:jr 16 cars- andcarried. aq.average of
1,500 to 2,000 tons:
C. Flow or Various Types of Traffic.
Raw mutes als, cool, oil, `steel, and. farm products all moved
to the industrial centers.
D. Density of Freight Traffic by Lines.
Probably the most strategic line van the '.Qktober Line. between
Moscow and[ Leningrad. Foods to
these towns from all over the USSR. d'hen, too, there, are
railroads of the Don Basin the Kuz Basin 3 (Urals)
Baku, and the Ukrainian System.
E. General Condition of Freight Service.
Generally, freight traffic moves smoothly. However, it moves at
a high price in. wasted motign, ins f ciepcy,-accidents, and a
great deal of labor.. Those respoitjs le in toe key-positions know
they must move all freight consigned by industry or be purged.
They, therefore, use any and all drastic methods to scaboplish
the fob.
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LI8^iARY SUBJECT & AMA CODES
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