Russia's Systematic Assault on Ukraine's Railway Lifeline
Russia has launched an unprecedented intensification of attacks on Ukraine's railway infrastructure, targeting what officials characterize as a deliberate campaign to sever one of the country's most vital arteries and render it, in the words of one railway executive, "unliveable."
The escalation has been dramatic by any measure. Since the beginning of 2025, there have been 800 documented attacks on railway infrastructure, damaging more than 3,000 railway objects and inflicting $1 billion in damage, according to Deputy Prime Minister Oleksii Kuleba. The trajectory is particularly alarming: attacks have tripled in the last three months compared to July, with September alone witnessing twice as many strikes as August. Most striking is that half of all railway attacks recorded since the full-scale invasion commenced have occurred in merely the past two months.
"It's not just about the quantity, it's also the approach of the enemy forces," explained Oleksandr Pertsovskyi, chief executive of Ukraine's state railway operator Ukrzaliznytsia. "Now, as they have very precise Shahed drones, they are targeting individual locomotives. The enemy is trying to stop us completely. This is part of a war tactic meant to cause panic among civilians, destroy our economy, and make the country unliveable."
For Ukraine, the railway network represents far more than mere transportation infrastructure - it constitutes a central pillar of both the war effort and economic survival. The 21,000-kilometre network carries an extraordinary 63% of the nation's freight, including grain and iron ore exports that are fundamental to the economy, and 37% of passenger traffic. With no civilian airports operational since the invasion began, trains represent virtually the only viable means for most people to travel domestically or internationally. Even visiting world leaders must arrive by rail, in what Ukrainians have termed "iron diplomacy." Crucially, military assistance from foreign allies frequently arrives by train, making the network indispensable to Ukraine's capacity to defend itself.
Russia's tactical approach reveals a sophisticated, multi-pronged strategy. Intelligence assessments have identified three primary objectives: destroying logistics capabilities in the south to prevent agricultural and industrial goods from reaching seaports; disrupting rail traffic adjacent to the frontlines in regions such as Chernihiv and Sumy; and comprehensively destroying infrastructure in the eastern Donbas region, Ukraine's industrial heartland. Beyond infrastructure, Russian forces are deliberately targeting trains themselves and, according to officials, actively attempting to kill train drivers. Stations where civilians congregate have become targets, as have high-voltage power lines that electrify the rail system.
The human cost has been severe and, in some instances, potentially criminal under international humanitarian law. At Shostka station in the Sumy region, a drone struck a passenger train, then a second drone deliberately attacked as rescue workers and medical personnel tended to the injured - a "double tap" tactic that Ukrainian officials suggest constitutes a war crime. The attack left 30 people injured, including three children requiring hospitalization, and one man was found dead, possibly from a heart attack induced by the trauma.
Train conductor Olha Zolotova, now recovering in a specialized railway workers' hospital in Kyiv following hip surgery and the insertion of a metal plate in her leg, recounted her experience. "When the Shahed hit, I was covered in rubble. My eyes went dark. There was fire everywhere, everything was burning, my hair caught fire a little. I was trapped," she said quietly from her hospital bed.
At Lozova station in the Kharkiv region, a strategically significant junction that connects four major routes, station head Tetyana Tkachenko described the pre-dawn attack that struck at 2:44am when five trains were present. "Everyone was sleeping. I woke up from the huge explosion," she recalled, now working amid a scorched facade and partially collapsed main building. "It was clear they were targeting the station. They wanted to do it. And they did it."
Ukraine has responded with an array of countermeasures. Trains are being retrofitted with electronic defence systems designed to counter drone strikes, while railway staff - civilian employees thrust into military roles - are being organized into dedicated air defence units. Operational protocols now mandate that when air raid sirens sound, trains immediately halt and are moved to the nearest station to facilitate passenger evacuation to bomb shelters. The commitment to maintaining service is unwavering; railway officials emphasize their goal of never cancelling a single service or destination, employing contingency plans that may involve combining trains with buses when direct rail service becomes impossible.
Yet the vulnerabilities are profound. Military and drone expert Serhii Beskrestnov notes that trains are inherently susceptible targets: they move relatively slowly and follow entirely predictable routes. While tracks can typically be repaired within a day - a testament to the dedication of repair crews working under dangerous conditions - damage to rolling stock presents a far graver challenge. "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," Beskrestnov warned, articulating perhaps the most existential threat to the system.
The railway attacks are occurring in concert with intensified Russian strikes on Ukraine's power infrastructure, which recently left hundreds of thousands without electricity. This coordinated assault on interdependent critical infrastructure systems appears calculated to compound the damage and erode civilian resilience as winter approaches.
Despite the onslaught, there are glimpses of the resilience that has characterized Ukraine's response throughout the war. Railway workers who fought fires during attacks receive bravery certificates and modest financial bonuses. When a passenger complained on social media about spending her birthday on a rerouted train that added six hours to her journey, the railway company sent her cake and flowers. Such gestures, however small, reflect a determination to maintain not just services but morale.
As Ukraine confronts what officials predict could be its hardest winter yet - the fourth since the invasion - they are urgently calling on international partners to provide enhanced air defence systems capable of protecting this essential infrastructure. The railway network has become, in the assessment of its chief executive, the site of "a very clear battle for the railways." The outcome of that battle may well determine Ukraine's capacity to endure.