The Battle for Ukraine's Railways

Russia has dramatically escalated its campaign against Ukraine's railway system, launching what officials describe as a systematic attempt to cripple one of the country's most critical lifelines.

Since the beginning of 2025, there have been 800 attacks on railway infrastructure, damaging more than 3,000 railway objects and causing $1 billion in damage, according to Deputy Prime Minister Oleksii Kuleba. The escalation has been stark: attacks have tripled in the last three months compared to July, with September witnessing twice as many strikes as August. Perhaps most alarmingly, half of all railway attacks since the full-scale invasion began have occurred in just the past two months.

"It's not just about the quantity, it's also the approach of the enemy forces," explained Oleksandr Pertsovskyi, head of Ukraine's state railway operator Ukrzaliznytsia. "Now, as they have very precise Shahed drones, they are targeting individual locomotives."

For Ukraine, the railway network is far more than a transport system - it's a vital organ keeping the country alive. The 21,000-kilometre network carries 63% of the nation's freight, including grain and iron ore exports that are essential to the economy, and 37% of passenger traffic. With no civilian airports operational since the invasion, trains represent the only means for most people to travel in or out of the country. Even visiting world leaders must arrive by rail, in what Ukrainians have termed "iron diplomacy." Military assistance from foreign allies frequently arrives by train, making the network crucial to the war effort itself.

Russian strategy appears focused on three main objectives: destroying logistics in the south to prevent goods from reaching seaports, disrupting rail traffic close to the frontlines in regions such as Chernihiv and Sumy, and comprehensively destroying infrastructure in the eastern Donbas region.

The attacks have taken a severe human toll. At Shostka station in the Sumy region, a drone struck a passenger train, then a second drone attacked as rescue workers tended to the injured - a "double tap" tactic that officials suggest may constitute a war crime. Thirty people were injured, including three children, and one man died. Train conductor Olha Zolotova sustained serious injuries requiring hip surgery when her train was hit. "I was covered in rubble," she recalled. "There was fire everywhere, everything was burning."

At Lozova station in the Kharkiv region, station head Tetyana Tkachenko described a night attack that struck at 2:44am when five trains were present. "They wanted to do it. And they did it," she said, surveying the scorched facade and collapsed sections of the main building.

Ukraine is implementing various countermeasures, including equipping trains with electronic defence systems and training railway staff in air defence. When air raid sirens sound, trains immediately stop and passengers are evacuated. Despite the onslaught, railway officials maintain their commitment to never cancelling services, using backup plans and combining trains with buses when necessary.

However, experts warn of a critical vulnerability. While tracks can typically be repaired within a day, damage to rolling stock is far more problematic. "If the Russians keep hitting diesel and electric locomotives, the time will come very soon when the track will still be intact but we'll have nothing left to run on it," warned military expert Serhii Beskrestnov.

As Ukraine faces what officials predict could be its hardest winter yet, they are calling on international partners to provide enhanced air defence systems to protect this essential infrastructure.