‘Red Arrow’: How Russia's first branded train came to be

Ninety-five years ago, on the night of June 9–10, 1931, a new train called the ‘Krasnaya Strela’ (‘Red Arrow’) departed from Leningrad (now St. Petersburg) to Moscow. It was intended primarily for government officials, artists and foreign tourists.

The ‘Red Arrow’ was the first in the USSR to feature SV-class sleeping cars and carriages with shower cabins. The windows, meanwhile, were adorned with silk curtains, passengers could order dinner to their compartment from the buffet car and there was even a communications booth with international connections.

The travel time was 9 hours and 50 minutes – a speed record in Russia at the time.

Interestingly, the cars of the ‘Red Arrow’ were originally blue, as this color denoted ‘first class’ in Europe. The train was repainted red in the 1960s – to match its name.

It was the ‘Red Arrow’ that marked the beginning of the history of Russian Railways' branded trains. Today, there are over 80 such trains. By the way, the Moscow Metro subway also has a ‘Red Arrow’ train, named in honor of its "above-ground" counterpart.

Today, the country's premier night express runs under number 001/002. The train consists of compartment carriages and SV carriages. The journey from Moscow to St. Petersburg takes 8 hours.