On the development of structural reform for Russian rail transport

Abstract

After years of reforms, Russian Railways, which is managed by the public railway, faces a situation known as an institutional trap. The assumption that the transformation of other mechanisms of the Russian economy will be performed synchronously with this key infrastructure sector proved wrong. A territorial and organizational model of railway management was replaced by an overcentralized management model according to types of activity. The Russian Railways now is a holding company, which manages railway operations through a top-down command structure from the corporate center to a primary functional railway unit. The paper analyzes the management efficiency of rail transport using a new model and considers ways out of the institutional trap. Approaches to developing structural reform of the Russian Railways are proposed.