The growing attention to the issues of increasing energy efficiency of railway transport results in suggesting various designs of traction rolling stock with the most advanced technical solutions, but, unfortunately, many of them remain only at the development or prototype stage.
The analysis of operating experience of existing mainline locomotives is proposed to help to develop fundamental principles of the concept of improving the energy efficiency of autonomous locomotives, aimed at creating a modular locomotive structure that makes it possible to coordinate operational loads with the operating modes of traction equipment to provide the best conditions for converting and transferring energy to wheel sets. Modern on-board systems of locomotives record many parameters that can be used both to determine the energy efficiency of the locomotive, as well as to evaluate new technical solutions aimed at the use of discrete-adaptive control of the modular design of diesel generator sets and traction motors under the operating conditions of mainline locomotives.
Implementation of the proposed concept could make it possible to save up to 20 % of diesel fuel during transportation work, which was confirmed during testing a prototype locomotive.

Construction in the regions of the Far North is characterised by numerous natural barriers, the presence of permafrost soils in the foundations of structures, the lack of infrastructure and extreme natural and climatic conditions. Thus, the most urgent task both in design and construction, and in further operation of transport infrastructure in the Arctic regions is to ensure reliability of the foundation of the structure.

To ensure reliability of structures designed on permafrost soils, it is necessary to carry out thermophysical calculations and make forecasts of the influence of temperature processes on the foundation soils.

The territory of the permafrost soils (PFS) occupies a large part of Russia, therefore, expanding the possibilities of using these regions for development of the transportation network is an important strategic task for the state. Today, in accordance with the Strategy for Spatial Development of the Russian Federation for the period up to 2025, the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation is a priority region in terms of economic growth and strategic impact.

The article analyses the impact of the technology of seasonally operating cooling devices on the foundation soils of Salekhard- Nadym section of the Northern Latitudinal Railway line (Kilometre points 2825+00 - PK 2830+00). The effectiveness of seasonally operating cooling devices on permafrost soils of the railway embankment foundation is shown in combination with heat­insulating material. The advantages and disadvantages of seasonally operating cooling devices are summarised.

Development of equal-strength two-layer spherical rubber­metal hinges (RMH), described in the paper, is associated with the problem that with an equal thickness of the layers of rubber bushings and an equal opening angle, there is a significant difference in their radial stiffness and relative deformation of the rubber. With hinge dimensions corresponding to those of the hinges used in the undercarriage of locomotives, there is a difference in relative deformation of inner and outer bushings by about 1,5 times. As a result, it is proposed to determine the load capacity of spherical two-layer RMH by the value of relative deformation of the rubber of the most loaded bushing. Also, studies have been carried out on the possibilities of creating a uniformly deformable design of a spherical two-layer RMH.

To determine the characteristics of a spherical rubber-metal hinge, applied digital computer modelling based on the finite element method. A proposed parametrised geometric model of a spherical two-layer RMH and a finite element model of an elastic bushing offer the ratio of radial stiffnesses of outer and inner bushings, which is close to the preliminarily determined one, based on the equations of the theory of elasticity in displacements in a spherical coordinate system.

It has been established that to achieve uniform elasticity by changing the opening angle, the opening angle of the outer reinforcement of RMH should be approximately 1,5 times less than the opening angle of the inner one. This makes it possible to reduce the width of outer reinforcement of RMH by 25 % but raises the problem of strength and rigidity of outer edges of intermediate reinforcement. Also, equal elasticity of hinge bushings can be achieved due to their different thicknesses, while to achieve non-uniform stiffness of bushings within ± 5 %, it is required to ensure that deviation of the intermediate cage diameter during hinge manufacture is less than ± 0,1 %.

The obtained research results prove the practical possibility of creating an equally strong (with equal bushing rigidity) spherical two-layer RMH. The issue of searching for a compromise design of RMS, acceptable from the point of view of loading of the intermediate cage and of the requirements for manufacturing accuracy, requires further study.

Transport policy includes various aspects of government regulation of transport and related industries. Decision-making in transport policy must consider a wide range of factors and evaluate options for the consequences of adoption of certain decisions based on various criteria, such as cost, environmental impact, and social effects. Two widely used decision-making tools in transport policy are multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) and cost-benefit analysis (CBA).

The objective of the study was to select decision support methods for transport policy that consider aspects other than monetary or hardly formalised ones

As a practical experiment, the study selected and ranked projects currently considered promising, per as they correspond to a given target using T Saat/s analytic hierarchy process. Several criteria developed within the framework of the study are proposed for the purpose of applied assessment of the pool of projects and their prioritisation.

Application of such criteria and AHP allowed to develop a new applied tool for evaluating projects for subsequent use in the system of state administration of the transport industry. The study concludes that although CBA and MCDA methods have their strengths and weaknesses, the choice of method should depend on the specific context of the project.

The article analyses the nature of transport relations between Russia and China in order to identify the main trends and forecasts regarding development of cooperation between the two countries in this area.

A brief excursion into the history of interaction of partners includes the retrospective of construction of mainlines that served to increase the efficiency of transportation.

The emphasis in the analysis of prospects is on improvement of transit routes within the framework of «One Belt One Road» and «Eastern Polygon» projects. Information is provided on construction of new and modernisation of existing railway lines with involvement of Chinese and Russian investment, including a bridge over the Amur River, the Kerak tunnel, and development of transit transportation through Kazakhstan and Mongolia. The role of transportation for effective cooperation in the energy field is emphasised.

The article considers two types of transportation - freight and passenger. In both cases, there is a steady increase in interaction since in case of cargo transportation, the partnership has a beneficial effect on energy integration, while the efficiency of passenger logistics is determined by the railway connection between the cities of Russia and China.

The cooperation of Russian and Chinese companies in the field of advanced technologies and investments in the field of high­speed rail transport is noted.

The conclusion is made about the mutually beneficial nature and prospects of strengthening cooperation in the field of railway transport, its role in development of the region and transport infrastructure, as well as in increasing the volume of cargo and passenger transportation.

Managing a company's sustainable development has an impact not only on internal processes, but also on interaction with suppliers and improvement of the system of responsible supply chain management. In this regard, it becomes necessary for transport companies as providers of logistics services to pay attention to compliance with sustainability criteria so that cooperation with them has a positive effect on the reputation and positions in customer sustainability rankings. This paper examines the criteria for evaluating the maturity of practices implemented by a logistics service provider for large manufacturing companies in relation to their environmental and social impact. The relevance of the work lies in the need to create tools for assessing the level of sustainable development of companies in the transport industry and develop recommendations for industry-wide standards.

The results of the study might be of interest to managers and specialists of logistics companies and employees of transport universities in view of special importance of high-quality education for achieving sustainable development goals.

The hypothesis of the study is associated with the assumption that it is possible to determine the specific quantity and quality of methods for managing transport organisations in value chains and identify the relationship between them, which will allow the formation of an integrated management system for chains and various modes of transport.

The methods of classification, synthesis, analysis, induction, and deduction were chosen as research methods while binary matrices formed based on classification features of objects and their dichotomies were used as a tool.

The study has resulted in substantiation of the content of the resource approach to the justification of the methods of managing a transport organisation; development of a classification of administrative, economic, organisational, and socio-psychological methods of managing this organisation; revealing interrelations of methods, principles, and approaches to management of objects of social and economic systems.

The implementation of the obtained results will reduce the likelihood of occurrence of contradictions in the value chains by harmonising the content of the systems managing its links; create prerequisites for reducing the lost profits of this type of chains as well as time and costs for making and implementing management decisions; and for responding in a timely manner to the unique requirements of end users of products and/or services.

Ensuring the regularity of flights is one of the key tasks of the airline. Three main components of effective functioning of the air transport system comprise ensuring flight safety, regularity and high quality of the services provided, that is, the service component of the air transportation process.

At the same time, it is worth paying attention to the fact that regularity or punctuality of flights is the basis for ensuring safety, the rhythmic implementation of the daily plan allows strictly adhering to the standards for timely maintenance and preventive inspections of aircraft. And flights operated with significant delays nullify all the efforts of air carriers to show a high level of service on board and when servicing passengers at airports. Violation of regularity of flights implies airline's losses and significant reputational damage. The traditional reasons for flight delays are unfavourable weather conditions, technical reasons, late arrival of the aircraft. But the indicator of delays in departures and arrivals of flights of some Russian air companies increases from time to time due to the congestion of airports, the congestion of airport waiting areas, disruptions in the rhythm of the execution of the daily planning.

Every flight delay creates a disruption. The issue of disruption management has always been a topic for scientific discussions and research. The object of research presented in the article is to study the model of managing an airport disruption, the task was to study options for decision-making in the form of a queue of aircraft for departure and analyse the results of these decisions, where the objective function will be to minimise losses from delay.

For decision-making, it is proposed to use a simulation model of a conditional disruptive situation.

The most accurate modelling of spatial distribution of passenger flows is a prerequisite for successful planning of development of the transport system. It is the basis for calculation of a predictive trip matrix. An approach based on the gravity model is among main modelling methods.

The work investigates the issue of the adequacy of the gravity model with a double constraint and an exponential-power function of gravitation. It is this specification of the model and its particular cases with exponential and power functions of gravitation that are most often used to estimate spatial distribution of passenger flows both in theoretical and applied research.

Calibration and validation of the specified model is shown on the observed (actual) matrix of railway passenger origin­destination matrix. It was built with the help of the data of Express [railway ticketing] ADB ACS: the number of tickets sold for long-distance trains for all the pairs of directly linked stations.

Since calibration of the gravity model can be carried out by different methods (depending on how the model incorporates stochasticity, which is responsible for differences between the modelled and observed data), after a detailed analysis of the most common methods for calibrating the gravity model, the approach was chosen based on the maximum likelihood estimation. The work also analyses the gravity model validation tools used to estimate the proximity between the observed and modelled trip matrices.

Comparison of the modelled and observed trip matrices resulted in the conclusion that the gravity model under consideration predicts several aggregate indicators with a high degree of accuracy: total passenger turnover, average travel distance, and travel distance distribution. At the same time, it is shown that the error in the forecast of passenger flow for most individual origin-destination trips is quite large. This circumstance significantly reduces the possibility of practical application of the gravity model or the analysis and modelling of passenger flows in long-distance railway passenger traffic.

The analysis and the experience gained in shaping contractual relations in the LCC format, both on the part of foreign companies and in the domestic market, have resulted in the conclusion that it is beneficial for the customer to conclude LCC. Ultimately, the costs are reduced by about 10-15 % compared to the traditional form of contractual relations (separate contracts for manufacturing and, respectively, service maintenance). LCC is also advantageous since it eliminates the need to search for and subsequently contract the contractors at the stage of operation.

When concluding LCC contract, both purchase and subsequent maintenance of rolling stock can be carried out through a concession agreement in compliance with legislation regulating the procurement procedure. When purchasing, it is necessary to be guided by the requirements of federal law in terms of mandatory tender procedures and selection of potential suppliers.

The analysis of existing models for formation of contractual relations for maintenance of rolling stock under the LCC contract has shown that it is advisable to consider the possibility of extending it to newly manufactured passenger rolling stock used in long­distance passenger transportation.

Improving the processes of cargo transportation leads to expansion of capabilities of carriers, manufacturers, and customers, which in turn results in an increase in the need for transportation of goods.

Increasing the speed and quality of operations at the stages of preparation for oversized cargo delivery will reduce the cost of delivering such cargo, will attract investment in various sectors of the economy.

Hence, relevant is the research topic considered as the purpose of the study described in the paper and inspired by the need to develop and apply a harmonised software algorithm for preparing to transport the oversized cargo.

The study was based on theoretical methods of analysis of domestic and foreign sources of information on preparation for transportation of oversized cargo. Aspects related to preparation for delivery of oversized cargo were sequentially considered, and a draft algorithm was developed to automate the planning of the stages of transportation of oversized cargo.

The application of the proposed automated unified algorithm for preparing for the transport process is expected to reduce the labour and time costs of the process of displacement of oversized cargo as a whole and the risks of making a technological error at the stages of preparing for transporting oversized cargo, which might result in financial and reputational losses.

The increased interest in implementation of the sustainable development agenda requires an objective assessment of the success of progress towards the set sustainable development goals and objectives.

The objective of the study described in the article is to consider the availability of transport indicators for SDG 9.1 («Develop high-quality, reliable, sustainable and resilient infrastructure, including regional and cross-border infrastructure, in order to support economic development and human well­being, with particular attention to ensuring affordable and equitable access for all») on the example of G20 countries, as well as to assess the completeness of the data provided by the countries. The information and empirical base of the study is based on data from the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe and Federal State Statistics Service of the Russian Federation. The study used general scientific methods of analysis, synthesis, and classification.

The result of data processing is an assessment of data availability and calculation of the data completeness index for G20 countries. The authors proposed additions to the monitored indicators in terms of the volume of passenger and cargo transportation by modes of transport, and also substantiated the need to introduce a new indicator «volume of investment in infrastructure by mode of transport».

The relevance of safety problems of a wide range of anti-icing materials and chemical anti-icing reagents used in the municipal economy is predetermined by a number of aspects and factors associated with the negative impact of anti-icing products on the natural environment, property and health of citizens, its lack of effectiveness in terms of ensuring transport safety, preventing causes, conditions of occurrence of transport accidents, the growth of injuries of the population in winter. The objective of the study was to study the possibility of using ash and slag mixtures that are practically harmless to the environment together with organic additives from plant waste as complex anti-icing materials.

The objective of the work was to study possibility of using practically environmentally friendly ash and slag mixtures along with organic additives as complex antiOicing materials. The main tasks comprised comparative analysis of effectiveness and safety of anti-icing materials used, justification of the possibility of replacing them with ash and slag secondary disposals, assessment of the current situation with handling of ash and slag waste, technical feasibility, environmental acceptability, economic feasibility of their reuse as designated at road transport infrastructure facilities.

The projected results of the study were reduction of the technospheric load on the natural environment, prevention of all types of negative impact on the health of citizens, their personal property, replacement of valuable natural raw materials with secondary ones, prevention of transport accidents and related man-made emergencies. Based on the results of the study, it is planned to conduct full-scale tests and, in case of obtaining positive results that determine safety and effectiveness of the use of a new anti-icing material, to apply for a patent for an invention with further implementation of an innovative proposal in various regions of the Russian Federation.

«Let’s remember everyone by name, let's remember our grief. This is necessary - not for the dead! This is necessary - for alive!» (Robert Rozhdestvensky «Requiem»)

When preparing the information about the Great Patriotic War, vivid stories about the heroes and their heroic deeds are often expected from the keepers of history - museum employees. Heroic deeds must certainly be impressive, stories are bright and exciting, supported by impressive numbers, high awards. It’s like that... But let the story that will be discussed in the article remind you that the Victory in the most terrible and bloody war of the 20th century became possible due to the daily heroic deeds of all citizens of our country, all without exception, regardless of their age, gender, profession. Precisely because the female students of MIIT, who volunteered for the front in 1942, did not consider themselves heroes, today the staff of RUT (MIIT) Museum is restoring their history bit by bit in the archives and new facts of their military path are published for the first time in 80 years!

This issue reprints extracts from the preliminary draft of one of the core regulations on railway operations which was the regulation on train traffic. It was compiled more than 130 years ago. Probably, the entire document is less of interest regarding engineering aspects but is of much greater interest as far as jobs are concerned or, in modern terms, human resources. Many aspects are quite relevant regardless the historical gap. We can quote requirement addressed to the employees when they work at the positions that combine two qualifications to possess all the skills necessary for each of them.
Publication keeps intact as much as possible the style, punctuation and lexis of the time.

The article considers and reviews the three-volume monograph «Military Law» under the general editorship of A. N. Savenkov and V. Kudashkin from the point of view of using its results in the process of training and professional activity of future employees in the transport sector. Positively evaluating the structure and content of the monograph, special attention is paid to the fact that it contains valuable information for the transport sector of the country. The authors of the review note that the monograph is able to meet the needs of modern transport education, taking into account the need for future specialists to develop legal knowledge about military transport duties and the military segment of transport relations. The review accentuate the achievements in this area and substantiate the prospects for further research.

The authors of the review also believe that it would be possible to dwell in more detail on the issues of military transport duty, which could be an excellent addition to the reviewed three-volume monograph.