'''Elektrichka''' ({{lang-ru|электри́чка|p=əlʲɪˈktrʲitɕkə}}; {{lang-uk|електри́чка, |'''elektrychka'''}}) is a [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] and [[Eastern Bloc|Eastern bloc]] commuter (regional) mostly [[suburban]] [[electrical multiple unit]] passenger [[train]]. Elektrichkas are widespread in [[Russia]], [[Ukraine]] and other countries of the former [[Warsaw Pact]] presenting a socially vital mode of transportation. In 2007, 4085 commuter trains a day (in each direction) were running on the [[Russian Railways]] network alone,<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.zdt-magazine.ru/publik/problem/2008/jun08/vod.htm| script-title=ru:Генеральная схема развития московского железнодорожного узла| trans-title=The master plan for the development of the Moscow railway hub| language=ru| access-date=2009-01-25| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090222022510/http://www.zdt-magazine.ru/publik/problem/2008/jun08/vod.htm| archive-date=2009-02-22| url-status=dead}}</ref> most of them electric. The first ''elektrichka'' rantrain on July 6, 1926, along the [[Baku]]–[[Sabunçu, Baku|Sabunchi]] line in Soviet [[Azerbaijan]].<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.zdp.ru/pub/8/2180_1.shtml| title=78 Years Ago the First Elektrichka Came Along| author=Yelena Leontieva| work=Zdp.ru| date=6 July 2005| access-date=25 August 2007| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929093939/http://www.zdp.ru/pub/8/2180_1.shtml| archive-date=29 September 2007}}</ref> Also urban (intra-city) ''gorodskaya elektrichkas'' and airport's ''[[aeroexpress]]es'' exist in a few cities of Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus.

"Elektrichka" was initially a colloquial abbreviation for ''elektropoyezd'' ({{lang-ru|электропо́езд}}, electric train), the official term for electrical multiple unit passenger train in respective languages. However, it is gradually becoming a part of the official [[trademark]] names. For instance, the new [[Kyiv Urban Electric Train|intra-city train service in Kyiv]] is officially called "elektrychka" in [[Ukrainian language|Ukrainian]]. The popular Internet search engine [[Yandex]] officially uses Russian "elektrichka" in its branded online [[Public transport timetable|schedule]] services.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://rasp.yandex.ua/ |script-title=ru:Киев. Расписание самолётов, поездов и электричек |language=ru |publisher=Rasp.yandex.ua |access-date=2012-09-20 |archive-date=2017-10-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171023050927/https://rasp.yandex.ua/ |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://market.android.com/details?id=ru.yandex.rasp |title=Yandex.Trains - Android-apps op Google Play |publisher=Market.android.com |access-date=2012-09-20}}</ref>

Since the collapse of communismthe Soviet Union, the term "Elektrichka" is not in use with non-Russian speaking population in some countries where native Slavic language speakers are not in the majority.{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}}

All elektrichkas are [[overhead line]]-fed [[electrical multiple unit]] (EMU) trains, usually consisting of 4 to 14 cars with a driver's cab at both ends. A 10-car train has a capacity of 1,200 passengers.{{citation needed|date=February 2012}} The Soviet trains were manufactured at the [[Rīgas Vagonbūves Rūpnīca|Riga Wagon Plant]] in the [[Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic]], and bore the "ER" ({{lang|ru-Latn|elektropoezd rizhskiy}}; [[Cyrillic]]: {{lang|ru|ЭР}}, {{lang|ru|электропоезд рижский}}) model designation.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Владимирович |first=Плешанов-Остоя, Алексей |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=670kDAAAQBAJ&dq=%D1%8D%D0%BB%D0%B5%D0%BA%D1%82%D1%80%D0%B8%D1%87%D0%BA%D0%B0+%D1%80%D0%B8%D0%B6%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B8%D0%B9+%D0%B2%D0%B0%D0%B3%D0%BE%D0%BD%D0%BD%D1%8B%D0%B9+%D0%B7%D0%B0%D0%B2%D0%BE%D0%B4&pg=PT16 |title=Как жилось в СССР |date=2016-11-22 |publisher=Aegitas |isbn=978-1-77313-021-7 |language=ru}}</ref> The plant was the only manufacturer from the 1950s until the break-up of the Soviet Union. The most widespread elektrichka models are the ER-2 ({{lang-ru|ЭР-2|links=no}}) and ER-9 ({{lang-ru|ЭР-9|links=no}}) (using [[Direct current|DC]] and [[Alternating current|AC]] traction respectively); later models in use are mostly their variants and successors.

With the [[dissolution of the Soviet Union]] some successor nations started production of new elektrichka models with limited success. Due to underfunding during the 1990s, railways continue to use Soviet-built trains, preferring renovation over replacement. Consequently, most elektrichkas in use are similar in appearance, differing only in [[livery]]; the Soviet-era standard was dark green, with red stripes on the front and a yellow stripe on the side of the train. Some newer models have wider doors or other electric engines, for example [[ED4 (Electric trainset)|ED4]] and {{ill|EP2D|ru|ЭП2Д}} series, cars are 1.5 windows longer and have wider doors, or ET4A with asynchronous motors.

Elektrichkas for [[Russian Railways]] are manufactured in Demikhovo, [[Moscow Oblast]], [[Torzhok]], Tver Oblast and [[Verkhnyaya Pyshma]], Sverdlovsk Oblast. The trains link almost all cities which have a railroad with its outskirts and with its surrounding cities. Much of the countryside which they pass through is scenic. The elektrichka is an indispensable mode of transportation in Russia.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bellybuttonwindow.com/1998/russia/ever_take_an_elektri.html |title=William Brumfield, As Moscow's Elektrichka, Goes, So Goes Russia|author=Moscow Times|author-link=Moscow Times|date=April 29, 1998|access-date=2011-09-27}}</ref>

Ukraine, possessing a dense network of [[Railway electrification system|electrified railways]], is supporting and developing its elektrychka system, officially known as elektropoyizd in Ukrainian. As of May 2010, there is no region of the country not covered by ''elektrychka'' service except the [[Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast|Ivano-Frankivsk]] and [[Chernivtsi Oblast|Chernivtsi]] regionsoblasts (which do not have electrified railways and use diesel trains). A typical ''elektrychka'' route is around {{convert|100|km|mi|0|abbr=on}} in length and has stops every {{convert|5|–|10|km|mi|0|abbr=on}} (about 3½ hours' travel time each way). It is possible to travel across the country by changing ''elektrichka'' trains two or three times. Tickets can be inexpensive, although such travel is uncomfortable.<ref>[http://en.ukrlandia.com.ua/elektrichka/ Trains in Ukraine, Elektrichka] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160325192256/http://en.ukrlandia.com.ua/elektrichka/ |date=2016-03-25 }} Retrieved 2011-09-27.</ref> Most trains collect money in the absence of a ticket.{{Citation needed|date=April 2008}} It is possible to travel for free illegally when, at a stop, one exits the car where fares are being collected and goes to one where fares have already been collected, bypassing the collector.

Many Ukrainian ''elektrichkas'' are evolving into inter-city services. There are new direct lines such as the [[Kyiv]]-[[Rivne]] route, which is about {{convert|300|km|mi|0|abbr=on}} long. This rail service is a cross between an ''elektrychka'' and a traditional train with [[sleeping car]]s. Such new trains have an increased level of comfort, with fewer stops. The longest routes for these more-comfortable ''elektrychkas'' are [[ZaporizhiaZaporizhzhia]]–[[Kharkiv]], [[Dnipro]]–[[Simferopol]], [[OdessaOdesa]]–[[Khmelnytskyi, Ukraine|Khmelnytskyi]], Odessa–Odesa–[[Vinnytsia]], Odessa–Odesa–[[Kropyvnytskyi]], Kyiv–[[Lutsk]], Kyiv–Khmelnytskyi and Kyiv–[[Shostka]], [[Lviv]]–[[Rivne]] and Lviv–[[Mukachevo]].

[[Ukrzaliznytsia|Ukrainian railways]] is capable of producing its own ''elektrychkas'', but such efforts are limited by the unprofitability{{Citation needed|date=June 2019}} of the service. The only success has been a modernization of [[Riga]] trains undertaken by local companies. However, the ''elektrychka'' line in [[Debaltseve]] area is reported to be served by Ukrainian-made trains.{{Citation needed|date=April 2008}} Ukrainian ''elektrychkas'' are now produced in [[Luhansk]], at the [[Luhanskteplovoz]] plant. New ''elektrychkas'' feature premium services like bar and children's cars, but they are only available on major routes. The largest ''elektrychka'' depot in Ukraine, serving Kyiv] and the surrounding [[oblast]]s, is situated in [[Fastiv]].

In Kyiv, since 2011, conventional elektrychka trains serve the new municipal rail service, the [[Kyiv Urban Electric Train]]. Financially, the project significantly differs from traditional ''elektrychkas'' .

{{see also|LatvianPasažieru RailwaysVilciens}}

Because plans for a [[Riga Metro|subway for Riga]] fell through in the 1980s, the railway remains the fastest way to travel around the city and its vicinity.{{according to whom|date=September 2016}} TheIn [[Rīgas2022, Vagonbūvesall Rūpnīca|RigaLatvian Wagonelectric Plant]]railway isroutes reconstructingoperate thesevarious trains,variants andof is[[ER2 planningelectric to manufacture newtrainset|ER2]] trains, whichhowever wouldthey're replaceexpected theto ''elektrichkas''be byphased 2012, whichout by now has been pushed back, to unknown date2024.

Before the [[Occupation of the Baltic states|Soviet occupation]] began in 1940, electrical railways carried annually 6 million passengers and the rolling stock did comprise in total 20 passenger wagons: four electric railcars (M1-M4) and 16 railcar trailers. M1-M4s were "evacuated" to Soviet Union during the first week of [[Eastern Front (World War II)|Eastern Front]] in 1941.

Since 2013, [[Stadler FLIRT]] trains are being used on Estonian electrical railways.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://elron.ee/en/elron/ajalugu/ |title=History {{!}} Elron |website=elron.ee |access-date=2020-04-02 |archive-date=2017-05-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170501042100/http://elron.ee/en/elron/ajalugu/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

''Elektrichkas'' are an important means of transport in [[Post-Soviet states|post-Soviet countries]], providing a cheap and easily accessible connection between city and countryside. The railway network is well-developed, while bus service to towns and villages may be rare or unreliable. Automobile and truck ownership in rural areas is rare, and elektrichkas are relatively reliable and safe. They are useful for ''[[Dacha|dachnik]]s'' and peasants selling their harvest at city markets. Some areas also have roads in poor condition, so railroads have an advantage in speed and comfort.

The trains are also a popular means of suburban and commuter transport for the region's large cities such as [[Moscow]], [[Saint Petersburg]] and Kyiv, being unaffected by [[traffic jam]]s. However, traffic congestion in these areas leads to frequent delays or cancellation of trains. For this reason, passengers in these areas who can afford them often{{Citation needed|date=March 2010}} prefer buses or [[marshrutka]]s to elektrichkas. In addition, the period from 1 to 5:30 am (time varies, depending on area and schedule) may be used for track maintenance or to allow high-speed trains to pass through without being slowed by elektrichkas (which stop at many stations, every 1–2&nbsp;km or so).

The rock band [[Kino (band)|Kino]] used the gloomy image of a morning ''elektrichka'' to depict society's atmosphere of fear and apathy.{{Citation needed|date=March 2007}} A song with the same title was released on their first album, "[[45 (Kino album)|45]]".

Scenes in some popular [[Soviet movies]] take place aboard ''elektrichkas''; for example, the female protagonist of ''[[Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears]]'' meets her love interest on an ''elektrichka'' on her way home to Moscow from a ''[[dacha]]''. [[Venedikt Erofeev]]'s novel ''[[Moskva-Petushki]]'' is based around ''elektrichka'' travel.<ref>''[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-17095227 Moscow Commuters And The Meaning Of Life]''</ref>

*[[S-Bahn]] , the German speaking term for a similar system

[[Category:Culture of the Soviet cultureUnion]]