Vorkuta Transport Hub and Its Role in Development of the Arctic Area
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VORKUTA TRANSPORT HUB AND ITS ROLE IN DEVELOPMENT OF THE ARCTIC AREA Kiselenko, Anatoly N., Komi Scientific Center, Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Syktyvkar, Russia. Malashchuk, Petr A., Komi Scientific Center, Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Syktyvkar, Russia. ABSTRACT meets region’s current needs in freight and passenger The article describes Vorkuta transport hub as transportation. Nevertheless, exploration of natural one of the few large regional centers of the Russian resources of the Arctic region and solution of other North, which, because of its location, is so important development tasks require strengthening of the for development of transportation links in the existing transport capacity of Vorkuta region through European and Ural Arctic zone. It is shown that the implementation of transport projects under the study, capacity of this hub, which has in its infrastructure all particularly regarding renewal of railroads, civil modes of transport, except inland water transport, aviation, road transport and pipelines. Keywords: Arctic, Vorkuta, transport hub, infrastructure, modes of transport, development projects. Background. The development of the Arctic zone of trains on it is carried out by using diesel locomotives. of Russia (eight reference areas, including Vorkuta) Up to Inta station the railway is double-tracked, and is directly related to the development of transport Inta–Vorkuta section is a single track. At Chum station, infrastructure [1, p. 69]. It should be noted, however, Vorkuta and Labytnangi sections branch off the that extreme climatic conditions ambiguously affect railway. prospects of its development. On the one hand, there The construction of the lines Inta–Vorkuta, Chum– is a steady downward trend in the area regarding total Labytnangi and their subsequent operation caused space and thickness of the ice cover of the northern significant changes in the conditions in permafrost seas, which leads to an increase in the attractiveness areas. Those changes are determined by disturbance of transportation along the Northern Sea Route. On of heat exchange between the surface of the earth the other hand, an increase in the average annual and the atmosphere as a result of removal of temperature leads to accelerated destruction of the vegetation cover, emergence of water permeability coast and port infrastructure, as well as to accelerated problems, reformation of snow deposits and degradation of permafrost area [2, p. 11], which deterioration of surface runoff conditions. There are critically affects the land transport infrastructure. For deformations of the roadbed, precipitation and example, the expenses of Gazprom in Nadym to spreading of embankments on thawing permafrost stabilize the carrying capacity of soils, along which soils, as well as formation of thermokarst depressions roads and pipelines pass, amount to 1 thousand on the territories adjacent to embankments [12, p. 2]. dollars/m2 [3, p. 82]. This leads to limitation of the weight of trains, Inland northern territories include Vorkuta as one especially those which are operated in the northern of few cities that can be considered as a large one direction. For example, the weight rate of trains according to local standards, and whose infrastructure stipulated for diesel locomotives 2TE10 at Vorkuta– facilities are located in the permafrost zone [4, p. 65]. Labytnangi section is 3500 tons, Vorkuta–Inta – 4400 It was founded thanks to development of the Pechora tons, and at Inta–Sosnogorsk section it rises to 4800 coal basin and the emergence of the town-forming tons1. coal enterprise here [5, p. 22]. While the estimated Large length of non-public tracks, which are the capacity of the city’s energy infrastructure allows to entrances to existing and closed coal mines, has accommodate 300 thousand people [6, p. 130], the always been a feature of Vorkuta hub. In the absence population of Vorkuta district as of January 1, 2017 of the technological process agreed upon between was 80,1 thousand (the maximum was 218,5 the railway infrastructure unit of JSC Vorkutaugol and thousand people in 1989 [7, p. 127]. JSC Russian Railways, congestion may emerge at the Vorkuta geological and industrial region has the approaches to Vorkuta station. This was observed, in largest coal reserves in Europe (about 4 billion tons) particular, during construction of the first stage of and has a high industrial potential [8, p. 14]. There Bovanenkovo–Ukhta gas pipeline due to the fact that are rich deposits of limestone and slate near rhe town the infrastructure on the secondary routes is not [9, p. 46], which are suitable for production of cement. sufficiently prepared for handling of general cargo. In addition, Vorkuta is supporting and logistics base Vorkuta station of Sosnogorsk regional unit of the of Bovanenkovo–Ukhta gas pipeline, the supporting Northern Railway is a cargo station and handles unit of the reindeer herders of Bolshezemelnaya operations of receipt and delivery of goods by small, Tundra [10, p. 56]. carload shipments; receipt and delivery of goods in Objective. The objective of the authors is to universal containers weighing up to 20 tons, for which consider the role of Vorkuta transport hub in both open areas and covered warehouses are development of the Arctic zone of Russia and to study equipped. its main elements. A 400 m long passenger platform is capable to Methods. The authors use economic, system and receive a train of 15 coaches. Direct communication comparative analysis, evaluation approach, scientific with the cities of Moscow, St. Petersburg, Syktyvkar, description. Labytnangi, Kirov, Adler, Nizhny Novgorod and others Results. is provided. 149 Rails with access to the sea Railway transport provides year-round 1 Railway . History, terminology, development history . communication with the rest of the country via Heavy traffic . [Electronic resource]: http://rly/uk/ Konosha–Vorkuta main line [11, p. 3]. The movement node/6867 . • WORLD OF TRANSPORT AND TRANSPORTATION, Vol. 17, Iss. 1, pp.142–153 (2019) Kiselenko, Anatoly N., Malashchuk, Petr A. Vorkuta Transport Hub and its Role in Development of the Arctic Area 150 • of the Arctic Area of theArctic Hub anditsRoleinDevelopment Transport Kiselenko, Anatoly N.,Malashchuk,PetrA.Vorkuta WORLD OF TRANSPORT AND TRANSPORTATION, Vol. 17,Iss.1, pp.142–153 (2019) Vol. WORLD OFTRANSPORT ANDTRANSPORTATION, Bovanenkovo Pic. 1.RailwayprojectsintheRepublic ofKomiandtheNorthernUrals. Project Norther ngitudinal Railway Salekhard Obskaya Project Belkomur Project Barentskomur AUTONOMOUS Pic. Railway ects he erritory omi public. 6 a) Range of action 1000 km b) Range of action 1300 km Pic. 2. Comparison of the polar aviation zone (developed by the authors). The operation depot provides technical According to the concession agreement to maintenance of locomotives, besides there are a car transport predicted cargo volume, it is proposed to shed and car maintenance points in Inta, Pechora, build the second main tracks at Inta–Chum section, Mulda, Usinsk, Labytnangi. lengthen the receiving and departure tracks at the The railway line connecting Vorkuta and stations, and to develop additional side tracks and Labytnangi is adjoined by the non-public railway equip them with automatic blocking devices at Chum– Obskaya–Bovanenkovo owned by PJSC Gazprom, Labytnangi section. In the framework of the project, which is used as a technological route2. in 2017, fiber optic cable was tested to monitor the The role of Vorkuta as a supporting transport hub movement of trains using the system of vibro-acoustic will increase significantly after implementation of the sounding of the railway track in permafrost conditions Northern latitudinal railway project, which is supposed at Kharp–Labytnangi section. Measures to increase to connect the Northern and Sverdlovsk railways. capacity will raise the weight rate of freight trains up Construction of the route with a total length of 707 km to 6000 tons4. Obskaya–Salekhard–Nadym–Pangody–Novy The Northern Latitudinal Railway was originally a Urengoy–Korotchaevo is planned for 2018–2023. The component of the large project «Ural Industrial – Ural projected volume of traffic on the main line – 23,9 Polar», the implementation of which will strengthen million tons per year3, transported goods comprising the importance of the transport hub of Vorkuta with mainly oil cargo and gas condensate. The project is regard to transshipment of resources in the western implemented on the principles of the private-public direction. Besides, some other transport projects, partnership in the form of a concession, the like Belkomur and Barentskomur, can be participants of which (JSC Russian Railways, PJSC implemented in the territory of the Komi Republic, Gazprom, Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous District) will which can seriously affect loading of the railway finance reconstruction of objects of their own railway network. Pic. 1 presents the projects, the infrastructure, and construction of new ones will be implementation of which is able to increase the carried out by a special project company (SPK- workload of the railway network of the Republic of Concessionaire). Komi and of the Northern Urals area. JSC Russian Railways will reconstruct Kotlas– The implementation of the project «Northern Chum–Labytnangi section, including Obskaya railway Latitudinal Railway» gives access to cargoes from the station of the Northern Railway, as well as Pangody–Novy east of the country to the Northern