State monopoly Russian Railways is going through its most severe crisis since the late 2000s. According to Novaya Gazeta Europe, sanctions, the economic slowdown and the consequences of the war have sharply reduced freight volumes, while from 2024 onward “abandoned” trains began piling up at stations across several regions, standing idle for weeks and sometimes months.
The outlet says the company’s debt has reached 4 trillion rubles, exceeding its annual revenue of 3.1 trillion. In 2025, Russian Railways asked for 200 billion rubles from the federal budget, and the government is discussing a rescue package worth up to 1.3 trillion rubles. Possible measures include selling a Moscow City skyscraper bought for about 193 billion rubles, disposing of Freight One, cutting investment and management staff, and almost freezing wage indexation. A proposal to swap bank debt for shares, effectively a partial privatization, was rejected by banks.
Transport analyst Alexander Polikarpov described the state’s approach with a phrase meaning that the “cow was once again told to give more milk and eat less.” Experts argue there is no reason to expect freight growth in 2026: there is nothing to replace the lost domestic and export cargo, and the decline in rail traffic reflects a broader industrial downturn.
Loading volumes fell by 5.6% in 2025, the worst result since 2009. Timber, ferrous metals, coal, ore, construction materials and grain were hit hardest. In the first two months of 2026, the indicator dropped by another 3.6%, with metallurgy, construction and coal mining continuing to weigh on performance. Russian Railways chief Oleg Belozerov linked the downturn in part to the construction crisis and the effects of attacks on oil refining facilities.
The article also points to the impact of giving military cargo priority. Analysts and interviewed experts believe the category “other cargo, including containers” may include military equipment, ammunition and goods for the defense industry. After new priority rules for such shipments took effect in 2024, a second wave of decline in civilian freight traffic began.
The situation is being worsened by labor shortages, a lack of locomotives and a buildup of unused railcars. According to Russian Railways, by March 2025 about 300,000 excess wagons had accumulated on the network, causing around 160 billion rubles in losses. Net profit in both 2024 and 2025 was only 14 billion rubles. Experts warn that even if tariffs keep rising, without large-scale state support and a long economic recovery the crisis could lead to the closure of unprofitable routes and the dismantling of underused track.