SOVIET RAILWAYS

Grey River Argus, 19 August 1931, Page 8

SOVIET RAILWAYS

In the carrying out of the Five Year Plan, the railways of the Soviet Union have a very big part to play. It might not appear to a superficial observer that the railways had progressed very much, and, indeed, the recently concluded Plenum of .the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the U.S.S.R. recorded the fact that railway transport lags behind the general development. Yet the record of achievements given by Rukhimovitch, Commissionary for Railways, in his report, and embodied in the resolution of the Plenum, is a very striking one. During 1930 the carried by railways totalled 230,000,000 tons, as compared with 132,000,000 tons in 1913. In he same year the railway carried 557,000,000 million passengers as against 185,000,000 passengers in 1913. The total railway traffic, including

freight and passengers, is thus twice that of 1913 and only 7 per cent, below the figure planned for the end of the Five-Year Plan. INCREASED WAGES In traffic carried the Soviet railways will presently hold second place in the world, next to U.S.A. This growth has been accompanied by a relatively small volume of new railway construction, and has resulted in a great strain on existing, equipment. Up to 1930 the Soviet Government built 8000 miles of new railways. The Plenum noted the improvement in transport, as shown by the average daily run of a goods wagon, which is 58.5 miles, as against 40 miles in 1913. At the same Mine, it declares that, i despite the unquestionable successes, 1 the rate of growth of railway transport lags behind the general development of the country, and makes transport a weak spot in the national economy. ' The Plenum approves of the mca-; sures which are being taken towards ' reorganisation of the railways, includ- : iiig the increase in workers’ wages. ; During 1932-33, it declares, it will be necessary to electrify 2300 miles. It resolves on the building this year lof 1038 new locomotives, 47,000 freight wagons and cisterns, 1467- passenger cars, 197,000 tons of rails to be laid, 22,000,000 tics and 46,000 tons of waterpipes. The Plenum approves of the increase in railwaymen’s wages at an average of 13 per cent. It points out the necessity for widespread application of piece-work on the railways, ex-

tensive bonuses, and provision of housing for transport vyorkers, for which purpose the Commissariat of Railways must be given sufficient funds for housing construction.