The two main railway lines in Northwest Russia, the October line and the Northern line, in 2009 has a drop in cargo flow of respectively 17,1 percent and 16,8 percent. The Oktober Railway, which has Murmansk City as its end stop, in 2009 shipped a total of 88,6 million tons of goods, most of it iron ore, oil and chemical products, fertilizers, forestry products and containers, Regnum reports.
Likewise, the Northern Railway, which links Moscow with Arkhangelsk Oblast and the Komi Republic in 2009 experienced a 16,8 percent drop to 57 million tons of goods. According to a press release from the company, it was shipping of construction materials and concrete which saw the biggest decline. Also passenger traffic declined in the period. The Northern line transported 8,4 million people, a drop of 12 percent, Regnum reports. The October and Northern lines are both part of the state-controlled Russian Railways company.
