The electrification of the Gorky — Zavolzhye suburban line was carried out at the turn of the 1950s–1960s and became the first phase of suburban service electrification on the Gorky railway junction. The first electric trains from Gorky to Zavolzhye began running in 1961 [1].
Concept
In November 1958, the chief project engineer for the electrification of the Gorky Railway, V. V. Mazov, stated that a route was under consideration for an electric train running from Gorky-Passazhirsky station via Kostarikha Balakhna and onward to the hydroelectric complex. Zavolzhye was by then a favorite leisure destination for city residents, and the electric trains were meant to give families a fast and convenient way to reach the Volga (disambiguation) [1].
In May 1959, the railway's chief engineer, V. Vishnovetsky, noted that development of the suburban areas was lagging precisely because of inadequate rail connections. A resolution was adopted under which suburban services on the Gorky junction were to be electrified between 1960 and 1962, with the Gorky — Zavolzhye line first in line [1].
Development of the suburban areas is proceeding too slowly. The reason is utterly inadequate rail connections.
Technical solutions
Alternating current at 25,000 volts was chosen for suburban services. This solution made it possible to maintain high voltage in the contact network while using significantly smaller wire cross-sections [1]:
- the distance between traction substations increased to 50–75 kilometers;
- energy losses in power-supply equipment were reduced by a factor of two to three;
- consumption of non-ferrous metals was reduced;
- electrification on alternating current cost approximately 20 percent less than on direct current.
Substations, routes, and trains
To supply the contact network, substations were constructed near Gorky-Sortirovochnaya station and at the Gorky hydroelectric power station [1].
Services were planned along the railway's existing alignments and factory approach tracks, on two routes: from Moscow Railway Station Pochinki, and along the Sormovo line — via Varya, Sormovo (disambiguation), and Pochinki. The greatest number of suburban trains was to operate on the Varya — Pochinki route [1].
For suburban services on the Gorky junction, ten-car electric multiple units were built for the first time in the country; a single such consist could carry up to two thousand passengers simultaneously [1].
Construction works
In addition to erecting the contact network masts, stations had to be re-equipped and existing track improved [1].
In December 1959, reports described the method used to install mast foundations: on the Pochinki–Kozino section they were driven by vibration, without digging excavations in advance [1].
Opening of services
Regular electric train services on the section were inaugurated in March 1961; the timetable showed departures from platform four at Gorky-Passazhirsky station [1].
The first train timetables were published directly in the newspaper, listing arrival and departure times at Gorky-Passazhirsky, Pravdinsk, and Zavolzhye stations, as well as the fares to intermediate stops [1].
Before electrification, there was no through passenger service from Gorky to Zavolzhye: passengers were required to change trains at Pravdinsk station [1].
Before electric trains appeared, the journey from Gorky to Zavolzhye involved two separate train legs for passengers, and complaints about this transfer reached the authorities on a regular basis [1].
Sources
- biblmr.r52.ru — Krasny Sormovich — Our History: on the electrification of the line to Zavolzhye (with quotations from the newspaper Gorkovskiy Rabochiy, 1958–1959) (archive)