New High speed train St Petersburg-Moscow-Nizhni Novgorod

On 18 December 2009, the high-speed Sapsan train service will be launched on the Moscow – St Petersburg – Moscow route. Ticket sales for the Sapsan trains are now open. The first journeys will begin at 06:45 in the morning, when two trains will depart simultaneously from Moscow and St Petersburg. The journey time will be 3 hours 45 minutes - 4 hours.

Trains Sapsan became so popular that RZD decided to put two more trains a day. And now there are 10 guaranteed departures and two - by special order

• 1 first class carriage
• 1 business class carriage;
• 8 economy class carriages;
• 1 bistro car.

Number of passenger seats on the Sapsan - 554.

• Safety glass, shock-resistant and fireproof structural parts and finishing materials used throughout;
• All units are constantly monitored online by the service centre;
• Ergonomic design of carriage compartments, no sharp edges or corners to exclude risk to passengers.

• Seat design and fittings on the Sapsan take into account passenger behaviour to ensure high comfort levels even on longer journeys;
• A comfortable environment is maintained in the cabin regardless of the season;
• Modern insulating materials ensure low noise levels;
• Bright fluorescent day lighting and subdued night lighting create an environment corresponding to the time of day;
• Carriage windows are made of insulating laminated glass and equipped with sun blinds. In winter, windows are heated by circulating warm air to prevent fogging;
• All compartments have clothes hangers and ample space for storing bulky luggage;
• Coaches have soft carpets for comfort and additional sound insulation;
• The toilet of the sixth coach has a collapsible table for changing nappies;
• All carriages have smoking areas.

• Two large boards in each carriage display the carriage number and keep passengers up to date during the entire trip about saloon air temperature and current speed;
• An electronic routing board near the front door of each carriage also tells passengers about the carriage class and train direction.

The sixth carriage of the Sapsan has a specially allotted area which is equipped with a reliable mount for accommodating wheelchairs and a call button wire. A special toilet designed for wheelchair users is close at hand and, like all the other toilets, is equipped with emergency call button. The floor throughout the Sapsan is at one level to facilitate the movement of wheelchairs. The table at the seat for a passenger with disabilities also takes into account special needs and has no legs and leans back up.

• The bistro car of the Sapsan gives passengers the choice eating standing up at one of the two bar tables or sitting comfortably at one of the ten window tables;
• We also possible to deliver hot meals from the bistro car to passengers at their seats. The mobile bar also offers soft and alcoholic drinks.

	Business-class carriage	Economy-class carriage
Passenger seats	adjustable backrest individual lighting folding or window table folding footrest built-in audio-visual unit socket between seats for notebooks and recharging adjustable backrest individual lighting folding or window table folding footrest	adjustable backrest individual lighting folding or window table folding footrest
Services included in the ticket price	fresh newspapers travel set children’s travel set for people travelling with children hot meal from the menu freshly brewed tea, natural coffee, soft or alcoholic beverages booking a taxi	booking a taxi
Additional services at extra charge

The price of a first class ticket includes hot food (passengers will have a choice of meals), reading materials, internet access, travel packs (containing ear plugs, eye masks, and slippers) and children’s packs.

Passengers in second class carriages can order hot food from the bistro carriage for additional payment, use the internet, order taxis, and watch and listen to video and audio programmes.

In addition, while travelling on the Sapsan, passengers can purchase tickets for other trains.

Price of tickets depends on Day of Week and Time of Departure.

We could send you this special table with ticket's rates - upon your request.

It seems that this train will be more and more popular and replace flights between Moscow and St Petersburg.

RZD has plans to put two more fast trains: Moscow-Nizhni Novgorod and St Petersburg-Helsinki. It will be next step in improvement of transport system of Russia with more and more comfort for passengers.

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The Sapsan is a high-speed electric train of the Velaro RUS series produced by the company Siemens Transportation Systems, and capable of a maximum speed of 250 km/h. A contract for the delivery of eight trains of the Velaro RUS series was signed by RZD and Siemens Transportation Systems in May 2006. The contract was worth 276 million euros. In April 2007, a contract was signed for the technical servicing of trains over a 30 year period, to the sum of 354.1 million euros. With the launch of the Sapsan train, the journey time between Moscow and St Petersburg will be 3 hours 45 minutes. Currently, the travel time is between 4 hours 30 minutes and 8 hours. The average time for a journey from Moscow to St Petersburg by plane (taking into account trips to and from the airport, flight registration, and flying time) is not less than 5 hours.