Railway Transport

The Belarusian Railway has an operational length exceeding 5.5 thousand km. Implementation of the project aimed at developing the automatic rolling stock identification system (ARSIS) allowing location and passage time of any sensor-equipped rolling stock units to be highly operationally and credibly identified was the most important project to improve export services of the Belarusian Railway in 2005. Work is underway to put the passenger trains running at a speed of 160 km/h into operation at the Brest – Minsk – Osinovka section being the most important component of the transport corridor No. II Berlin – Warsaw – Minsk – Moscow.

The state-of-the-art data transmission network which is to be integrated into the unified digital network of Russian and CIS countries is being developed that would allow an increase in the level of the passenger/freight service data exchange. An optical fiber communication line has been laid along the Krasnoe – Orsha – Minsk section and currently work is underway along the Minsk – Baranovichy – Brest section.

The Belarusian Railway actively cooperates with such international transportation organizations as the Railway Transport Council of CIS and Baltic States, Organization for Railway Cooperation (ORC), International Railways Union (IRU) and Forum Train Europe (FTE).

Motor Transport and Roads

Belarus has a developed and extensive motor road network allowing the year-round communication with all populated areas. The length of the highway network is over 81 thousand km. The main motor road M1/E30 Brest – Minsk – Russian border (592 km) is the continuation of the European main motor road Cork – London – Berlin – Warsaw. The motor road Kaliningrad – Kaunas – Vilnius -Minsk – Gomel crosses Belarus from northwest to southeast to service freight to the largest seaports. The largest motor road from St. Petersburg to Odessa through Vitebsk, Orsha, Mogilev and Gomel connects the north-western region of Russia and, through it, Scandinavian countries with Ukraine and ports of the Black Sea. The important route Minsk – Grodno – Gdansk is the shortest communication between countries of the northern part of Western Europe through the seaport Gdansk in Poland with Belarus, Russia and Ukraine.

To increase the traffic volume and develop the traffic network, Belarus attributes great importance to replacement of the vehicle stock. The passenger vehicle fleet was replaced by 12.4% and freight vehicle fleet by 6% from all funding sources in 2005.

International haulers deliver cargo to more than 60 countries worldwide. 37 border checkpoints in Belarus offer services for them and a chain of parking lots, gas stations, hotels, cafes and traffic controller stations was established and is being expanded.

155 diagnostic stations and control points, including 25 mobile ones operate to meet the requirement of the car owners in state technical checkup services.

Air Communication

he largest Belarusian airport is the National Airport Minsk. Airports are also available in other cities: Gomel, Brest, Grodno, Vitebsk, Mogilev and airport Minsk-1 in Minsk. The Belarusian National Airline Belavia accounts for nearly 90% of the passenger service. To replace the aircraft fleet, 2 Boing-737/500 planes were procured based on financial leasing.

Currently, two airports regularly operate flights to 14 foreign cities and regular flights along 10 routes to the CIOS countries. It operates charter flights to many countries. Belavia is the member of the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

Pipeline Transport

Belarus has an extensive network of main oil and gas pipelines. The oil pipeline Druzhba supplies crude oil to Polotsk and Mozyr refineries. It comprises the systems of main oil pipelines Unecha - Polotsk - Ventspils, Polotsk – Birjai - Majeikai with a complete process cycle. The gas is transited through the system of main gas pipelines: Torzhok – Minsk – Ivantsevichy, Ivantsevichy – Dolina, Ivantsevichy – Slonim – Grodno, Minsk – Vilnius, Minsk – Gomel, Kobrin - Brest – Warsaw, Yamal – Europe, Dashava – Minsk and Ivantsevichy – Vilnius – Riga.

A dynamic development of the Belarusian transport system requires substantial investments. The investments are to be intensified in the transport and road sector within the framework of such governmental projects and programs as modernization of a motor road section Brest – Minsk – Russian Federation border, construction of city bypasses and also construction, rehabilitation, repair and maintenance of highways and rehabilitation of terminals and stations. An investment project for purchasing two sea-going merchant ships has been developed.