On the Ways of Development of Railway Business (1910)

Abstract

110 years ago, the professional railway community conducted sharp discussion on the ratio of commercial and state interests in domestic railway activity. There were attempts to use that criterion to classify the existed railways by directions and main business purposes. The discussion also referred to the aspects of monopolism and competition, strict government control over the costs of rail construction, distribution of dividends or their investment in future development, fair tariffs. The problem of, in modern terms, connectivity of territory touched upon the choice between enhancing transit capacity of main railroads and constructing of new less important railways in the regions where they have not been built yet. Quite particular topic referred to the need to pay more attention to training of economic skills of employees as to condition of successful commercial activity of railways. It concerned training of technical employees in railway vocational schools, and of the future executives in higher schools, provided that «in the nurseries of railway engineers who provide a contingent of heads of railways, students are given complete economic preparation for their future activities».