Tsarskoye Selo Railway

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Tsarskoye Selo Railway

Tsarskoye Selo Railway was the first public railway in the Russian Empire. It ran 27 km from Saint Petersburg to Pavlovsk, going through Tsarskoye Selo. Construction started in 1836 and the railway opened on October 30, 1837. It carried passengers and some cargo and helped pave the way for Russia’s future rail networks.

History in brief
- In 1834–1836, European railway ideas reached Russia. Franz Anton von Gerstner suggested building lines from Moscow to Saint Petersburg, and then further places.
- A commission approved a short line between Saint Petersburg, Tsarskoye Selo, and Pavlovsk. Work began in May 1836 with many Russian and European investors.
- Early tests used horses on short sections in late 1836. Steam locomotives began testing in November 1836 on a longer section, and passengers rode with steam on the day the line officially opened.
- The railway proved it could operate in winter. A telegraph system was added in 1838, with electric telegraphs tried later (1845–1848) and improved in 1856.
- In 1840, a head-on collision led to a one-way system for safety. A second, parallel line was built in 1876 to increase capacity.
- The railway was profitable but small. It employed hundreds of workers and a significant share of income went to salaries. In 1899–1900, it was merged into the Moscow–Windau–Rybinsk Railway and was converted to the standard Russian gauge.

Construction and design
- The route was straight, with many small wooden bridges and a few longer stone bridges. The line used a wide track gauge of 6 feet (about 1,829 mm) at the time.
- The Pavlovsk terminal was built as a social center with concerts and entertainment in the 1850s.

Operation and daily life
- The first regular service started in January 1838. Early trains were often horse-powered; steam locomotives were used on Sundays and holidays, then gradually on other days.
- Trains ran directly between Saint Petersburg and Tsarskoye Selo, and later between Saint Petersburg and Pavlovsk, stopping only at designated places.
- Rules evolved over time, including smoking bans for safety and the use of signals to communicate. An optical telegraph appeared in 1838, followed by attempts at an electric system.

Rolling stock and performance
- By 1837, the railway owned six locomotives, 44 passenger carriages, and 19 cargo carriages.
- Trains typically pulled eight carriages and traveled about 30 km/h, with speeds rising to around 42 km/h by the 1870s.
- Locomotives were imported from England and Belgium, weighing around 16 tonnes. Locomotives and carriages had wooden frames with cast-iron wheels and various designs for the upper passenger sections.
- From 1856, some locomotives were built locally as production expanded.

Legacy
- The Tsarskoye Selo Railway had limited length and capacity, mainly serving noble sightseeing and Pavlovsk festivities. Yet it was an important early step in Russia’s rail network.
- It helped reveal the drawbacks of the initial 6-foot gauge, guiding future rail construction toward the 1,524 mm (5-foot) gauge used elsewhere in Russia.
- In the 1840s–1850s the line was used for training railroad workers and for testing locomotives and railway technology.

See also
- Railways history in Russia
- Russian Railway Museum

References and notes
- The opening of the railway was a widely celebrated event and even inspired commemorative coins and public interest, though not all medals were distributed.
- The line’s development and tests contributed to Russia’s broader experience with early rail transport.