Russian Railways prepares biometric boarding trial for Sapsan trains

Russian Railways will soon begin testing biometric boarding on Sapsan trains between Moscow and St Petersburg, deputy chief executive Ivan Kolesnikov said on October 14.

Kolesnikov outlined the plan at the Public Transport 2026 forum in Moscow. He said pilot projects using biometric data for train boarding were already operating on several Russian routes. Sapsan high-speed services will be a further testing ground.

The executive did not give a specific starting date for the trial. The report also did not identify participating departures, eligibility conditions for passengers or a deadline for completing the experiment.

His announcement concerns preparations for testing. He did not announce biometric boarding across every Sapsan departure. The forum where he presented the company’s plans runs in the Russian capital on October 14 and 15.