Kazakhstan raising fares will buy 200 new passenger wagons

Raising the tickets prices will allow Kazakhstan national railroad carrier Passazhirskiye Perevozki, a subsidiary of the national railroad operator Kazakhstan Tmir Zholy, to purchase over 200 new passenger wagons, Tengrinews.kz reports citing the company’s press-service. Railroad fares were raised by 12 percent starting from January 7, 2013. “Raising fares and increasing subsidies will allow to perform repairs of 50 passenger wagons, purchase 208 modern wagons for Passazhirskiye Perevozki with 158 wagons out of them being Tulpar Talgo, 1 diesel train and 1 electric train for suburb transportation,” the press-service writes. The company also notes that passenger transportation fares in Kazakhstan are currently among the lowest in CIS countries (in the post soviet space). According to the company, the cost of a 500km in-country transportation in Kazakhstan is around 1,700 tenge ($11), which is 2-2.5 times lower than the rates in Belarus and Kyrgyzstan and more than 4 times lower than the rates in Russia. “Changing the railroad fares was also driven by a significant increase in the cost of fuel. The cost of diesel fuel went 15 percent up, solid fuel (coal) prices were raised by 5 percent and water prices went 14-20 percent up. The cost of wagons’ maintenance increased by 30 percent in average, wagons overhaul’s costs went 40 percent up, while roundhouse servicing became 4 percent more expensive,” the company states.