Vostochny Railway Station, Moscow

The Vostochniy (Eastern) railway station is the first long-distance railway station opened in Moscow, Russia, in more than 100 years.

Located in the Cherkizovo district of Moscow, the new transportation hub became the city’s tenth railway terminal that can serve both short and long-distance trains.

Owned by Russian Railways, the new Vostochniy station links the railway and metro stations in the Kursk direction, as well as the Moscow central circle (MCC) to establish a key transport interchange hub in the region. The transportation hub allows commuters to reach their destinations quickly and provides new opportunities for the residents of Moscow.

The Vostochny Terminal was developed between 2020 and 2021 as part of a crucial transit interchange hub in Cherkizovo that connects the Sokolnicheskaya metro line’s Cherkizovskaya station (Line 1), the MCC Locomotive station, and urban surface transportation.

Opened in May 2021, the Vostochny station was constructed to relieve traffic congestion in the busiest section of the Kurskaya-Kalanchevskaya railway line and improve its train-handling capacity.

The overall passenger capacity of the Moscow Metro and the MCC is estimated to grow by 75,000 passengers a day, including 25,000 long-distance railway passengers, upon completion of the Vostochny station.

The Cherkizovo hub is expected to be among the top ten biggest transport hubs in Moscow by 2025 with a daily ridership of more than 133,000 passengers.

Vostochny railway station location and route details

The Vostochny station is located on the outskirts of the city, unlike most other European and Russian railway stations, which are generally located in the centre of the cities.

The new long-distance railway station provides access to more than 100 different routes through an interchange to the metro, the MCC, and surface transportation. Transit passengers will find it easier to access the capital airports due to the Vostochny station’s connection with the MCC.

Trains from the station will reach the Okruzhnaya station within 18 minutes, from where an interchange to the air express in Sheremetyevo is available. It will take 29 minutes to reach the Verkhnie Kotly station for the interchange to the air express in Domodedovo and 12 minutes to Andronovka station for the interchange to the commuter train headed towards the Zhukovsky airport.

The Vnukovo airport can be reached by travelling on the Sokolnicheskaya line from the Cherkizovskaya station to Salaryevo station and taking a 20-minute bus ride to the airport.

Vostochny railway station facilities

Spanning 9,600m², the Vostochny station complex includes a 4,200m² modern passenger terminal and two platforms of varying heights spread across the remaining 5,400m².

The new Vostochny station is designed to comply with the standards of Moscow Transport. The complex includes a multi-level high-tech style building featuring a waiting hall with 200 chairs equipped with USB chargers, a reception hall, a business-class hall, and other facilities such as automatic storage, universal ticket offices, a food court, and mother and child rooms.

The station complex also features modern heating and ventilation systems, air-conditioning, fire, and transport security systems. It has ATMs, vending machines, and rental power banks, and Wi-Fi throughout the property.

Advanced booking offices and improved contactless options along with special devices to disinfect escalators are also available.

Passengers can access a medical clinic at the station that provides primary healthcare and Covid-19 vaccination.

Four escalators and three elevators were installed at the station to help passengers with disabilities, elderly persons, mothers with children, and passengers with baggage.

A convenient passage to the station building from Amurskaya Street will be built by October 2021 to reduce the distance between the metro station and the MCC by approximately three times.

Plans also include parking spaces for 311 cars, a car-sharing parking area, and kiss and ride zones.

Trains operating to and from the long-distance station

Approximately 48 long-distance trains arrive and depart from the Vostochny railway complex, including 20 Strizh and Lastochka high-speed trains bound for Nizhny Novgorod and Ivanovo. The Lastochka trains use the high platform, while the Strizh trains use the low platform.

The remaining 28 are transit trains travelling via Moscow on their journey between the northwestern and southern parts of the country.

The majority of the long-distance trains operating on the Vostochniy station will be transferred from Kurskiy to allow the launch of the D4 Line of a new rail transit system known as Moscow Central Diameters. The fleet runs on the MCC’s third main track with upgraded and electrified ramps.

The transit trains transferred from the Kursky Railway Terminal include those running from St Petersburg and Murmansk to the cities of Adler, Vladikavkaz, Belgorod, Volgograd, Anapa, Kislovodsk, Makhachkala, Yeisk, Novorossiysk, and Chelyabinsk.