Ukrzaliznytsia (UZ), the monopoly railway operator, carried 639,700 passengers between August 18 and 24, which is 0.8% less than a week earlier, according to a statement by the company on Telegram.
“We are gradually coming out of the peak travel season, but we continue to provide detailed information on passenger traffic statistics!” wrote UZ CEO Oleksandr Pertsovskyi on his Facebook page.
Demand for the most popular route, Kyiv-Lviv, amounted to 128,000 requests last week, which is 15.2% less than the week before. The Kyiv-Odesa route received 71,700 requests, which is 22.3% less than during the period from August 11 to 17.
Demand for the Kyiv-Kharkiv route decreased by 8.6% to 63,300 searches, and for the Kyiv-Peremyshl route by 10.3% to 58,400.
According to statistics, the total volume of traffic still remains higher than last year: during the reporting week, the increase was 3.9% or 23,700 passengers.
The average number of passengers carried per car from August 18 to 24 was 467, which is 6.4% more than during the same period in 2024.
In addition, the number of passengers in children’s groups increased 1.3 times to 23,600, and the number of military personnel transported through the special reserve increased 2.4 times to 12,000.
As reported, in the first half of 2025, Ukrzaliznytsia increased passenger traffic by 1.2% compared to the first half of 2024, to 13.52 million. This is 23% more than in January-June 2023, Pertsovsky previously reported on Facebook.
Ukrzaliznytsia (UZ), the monopoly railway operator, transported 644,000 passengers between August 11 and 17, which is 4.8% or almost 30,000 more than in the same period in 2024.
“As in previous peak weeks, there are many destinations where demand exceeds supply by 5-7 times. We must continue to order new cars, find resources for even more repairs, and move forward with the program to increase the number of Intercity trains!” wrote UZ Chairman Alexander Pertsovsky on his Facebook page.
According to the company, compared to the previous week, transportation also increased by 1.1%.
According to statistics, the number of passengers carried by one car per week reached an average of 476, which is 8.2% more than in the same period in 2024.
In addition, the number of passengers in children’s groups increased 1.5 times to 29,800, and the number of military personnel transported through the special reserve increased 2.4 times to 12,500.
Separately, the statistics noted that the largest number of searches last week were for destinations in both directions on the Kyiv-Lviv route – 151,600 requests against 21,800 seats. The Kyiv-Odesa route had 92,300 requests against 19,100 available seats, Kyiv-Kharkiv – 69,200 searches and 18,500 seats, Kyiv-Peremyshl – 65,000 requests against 22,800 available seats, and Kyiv-Dnipro – 55,000 searches and 16,900 seats.
The current solution from Ukrzaliznytsia is to increase the efficiency of car utilization, namely, after arriving from their main route, cars go on their next trip, managing to make another “loop” between their main route.
As reported, in the first half of 2025, Ukrzaliznytsia increased passenger traffic by 1.2% compared to the first half of 2024, to 13.52 million. This is 23% more than in January-June 2023, Pertsovsky previously reported on Facebook.
Buying a train ticket is not just a transaction – it is the conclusion of a public contract, so “Ukrzaliznytsia” (UZ) is obliged to provide services to everyone who applies to it.
According to Kirill Iordanov, a senior attorney at Barristers JSC, it is only the law, not UZ’s internal documents, that can restrict the right to travel because of the impossibility of buying a ticket through Dia.
“Buying a train ticket is not just a transaction. It is the conclusion of a public contract. In simple language: it’s like coming to the store for bread. The store cannot refuse to sell you if you have the money. In the same way, “Ukrzaliznytsia” as a carrier, occupying a monopoly position in the country, is obliged to provide services to everyone who applies to it. This is directly spelled out in Article 633 of the Civil Code of Ukraine,” he told Interfax-Ukraine.
Iordanov noted that by setting “Dia” as the only key to access the service, the carrier arbitrarily changes the conditions of its provision, it does not just offer a convenient digital service, but forces its use, creating an artificial barrier.
“It turns out to be a paradox: your passport, the main identity document, suddenly becomes less important than having an app on your phone. This is not just an inconvenience – it is a direct violation of the principle of equality. The Constitution of Ukraine guarantees everyone the right to freedom of movement. Of course, this right can be restricted, but only by law, not by an internal decision of a joint-stock company (UZ – IF-U), even if it is state-owned,” he said.
Iordanov believes that the innovation of “Ukrzaliznytsia” to sell tickets only through authorization in “Diya” in practice is a restriction of freedom of movement.
“Ukrzaliznytsia’s initiative hurts the so-called ‘digital divide’, putting huge groups of people in an unequal position. All these people are not speculators. They are ordinary passengers, who are actually deprived of access to a basic service by the state represented by Ukrzaliznytsia,” says the lawyer.
Iordanov also drew attention to the risks of vulnerability of “a non-alternative system tied to the complex interaction of several platforms (UZ, Diya, BankID, mobile operators).”
“Critical dependence on a single infrastructure creates huge risks: in case of a powerful DDOS attack on Diya’s servers or a technical failure in Ukrzaliznytsia’s system, ticket sales for key destinations will be completely paralyzed. Without an alternative in the form of ticket offices, thousands of people will be trapped at a critical moment, making the system potentially dangerous. Adding to this system vulnerability is the human factor, as Diya is inextricably linked to the smartphone. If the phone is lost, broken or simply discharged, a person loses the only key to access the service, turning an ordinary life nuisance into a serious problem,” he stated.
In addition, Iordanov noted that the initiative creates invisible barriers to the outside world, as foreign tourists or Ukrainians permanently residing abroad cannot use the system.
At the same time, he drew attention to the “legal vacuum of responsibility” in case a passenger suffered financial losses due to a failure in the system.
“The current legislation does not provide a clear answer, leaving the consumer alone with his problem, with no real levers to compensate for losses. This set of technical and operational risks demonstrates that the hasty introduction of alternative-free digital solutions can create a collapse where before it was just an inconvenience,” he said.
At the same time, Iordanov emphasized that the judicial prospects of lawsuits by passengers who will not be able to buy a ticket because of the innovations are very high.
“The arguments for the court are ironclad: violation of consumer rights, coercion to conclude a contract on discriminatory terms and violation of constitutional rights. The court is likely to side with the person and oblige the carrier to remove the obstacles,” he said.
In addition, according to Iordanov, there may be a harsh reaction of the AMCU to UZ’s actions – from mandatory recommendations to change the rules to a multimillion-dollar fine.
“Ukrzaliznytsia is a monopolist. And abuse of monopoly position is a direct competence of the AMCU. Creating conditions under which one group of consumers (with “Dia”) gets access to the service, and the other (without ‘Dia’) – not, is a classic example of such abuse”, – he emphasized.
“When introducing any innovation in the social sphere, it is important to keep in mind the key principle – inclusiveness and availability of choice. “Diya.Pidpys” can be a great verification tool, a convenient and modern option for many passengers. However, preserving the possibility to buy a ticket in the traditional way, for example, at the ticket office by passport, will avoid creating barriers for different groups of citizens,” the lawyer summarized.
As reported, due to the shortage of tickets for trains UZ since July 25 spread in test mode verification through “Diya.Pidpys”, which works for international flights and five popular domestic trains. However, the move was heavily criticized by some passengers. In response, the company refused to verify through “Dia.Pidpys” when buying tickets for two domestic trains – #105/106 Odessa – Kiev and #91/92 Lviv – Kiev and test left it for three trains: #29/30 Kiev – Uzhgorod, #12 Lviv – Odessa and #27/28 Kiev – Chop.
The volume of export traffic of JSC Ukrzaliznytsia in January-June 2025 decreased by 13.5% to 38.7 million tons, domestic traffic by 11.7% to 35.5 million tons, while the volume of imports increased by 5.4% to 5.3 million tons, the company’s CEO Oleksandr Pertsovsky reported on Facebook.
“In the first half of 2025, Ukrzaliznytsia transported 79.6 million tons of cargo, which is 11.8% less than last year. With this trend continuing throughout the year, the annual figure will be approximately 50-52% of the freight volume in the period before the full-scale invasion (2021). We are currently experiencing the lowest load in the history of the railway, which is extremely painful for the company’s ability to function, as freight traffic has always been the main source of income for the railway,” he said.
Percovsky clarified that the largest decline was in the transportation of coal, which fell by 27.5% due to the loss of mines and the deterioration of the security situation, and grain and milled products, which fell by 32.5%.
“Farmers point to the late start of the season, so we are counting on some levelling off later in the year (more shipments went out in July). Fair rules of the game are also important: we are working closely with the State Railway Transport Inspectorate on stricter checks of weight limits so that grain is not transported to ports in violation of weight limits, ‘killing the roads’ with trucks,” said the CEO.
According to him, the company managed to work with customers in the construction industry, and against the backdrop of some market revival, construction transportation of building materials increased by 4% and cement by 10%. However, as Pertsovsky emphasized, the current ultra-low tariffs for this group of goods do not add to UZ’s profits.
The CEO explained the growth in imports by the work of colleagues from the commercial team, who were able to convince important players in the fuel market to try rail services and use our logistics with our subsidiary UZ Cargo Poland.
As for transit, it is almost non-existent in the context of the war with Russia, although the company is taking its first steps towards building multimodal routes, Pertsovsky said. He recalled that in the first half of this year, the first transit container ferries were sent to Georgia, opening up opportunities for transit to Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and, in the future, increasing transit volumes from China through the “Middle Corridor.”
He also said that UZ had launched a systematic survey of freight customers. “The customer loyalty index (NPS) was -27%. It’s an honest start, but it was important to record it. We have taken specific steps (in particular, in terms of digital services and work on cargo delays) and will continue to measure progress,” Pertsovsky emphasized.
Among the issues that the company was unable to resolve in the first half of the year, he mentioned the indexation of freight tariffs, which “froze at the level of mid-2022.”
“We are working to prove that there must be a balance and a fair approach to those who make it possible to sell these cargoes – our Ukrainian railway workers,” said the CEO of UZ, pointing to wage growth and investments in the company’s customers.
As reported, in 2024, Ukrzaliznytsia increased freight traffic by 17.9% compared to the previous year, to 174.9 million tons.
Last year, UZ increased export transportation by 51.2% to 84.67 million tons, imports by 40.9% to 9.63 million tons, while domestic transportation decreased by 5.5% to 80.2 million tons.
Additional summer trains will run in August, according to the press service of Ukrzaliznytsia JSC.
In particular, train No. 708/707 Odessa-Vinnytsia will depart from Odessa and Vinnytsia on August 1 and 3.
Trains No. 740/739 Kyiv-Kryvyi Rih and No. 753/754 Kryvyi Rih-Kyiv will run on July 31, as well as on August 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10.
Train No. 275/276 Kyiv – Vinnytsia will depart from Kyiv and Vinnytsia on August 1 and 3.
The agency said that compartment cars with seats will be used on the routes and urged passengers to choose their seats carefully and pay attention to the note that there will be no linen on these trains.
“Tickets for most trains are available on all official railway resources. Tickets for trains to/from Kryvyi Rih will go on sale soon,” the agency emphasized.
In response to ticket shortages, Ukrzaliznytsia is rolling out a trial version of the “Dія.Підпис” verification system, which already works for international flights, for five popular domestic trains.
“We continue to use all means to reduce the number of possible abuses when purchasing train tickets. Therefore, from August 1, in order to buy or return tickets for certain domestic trains, passengers must verify their identity through ”Dія.Підпис,” the company said in a statement.
According to the statement, during the first stage of implementation, verification will be required for the following trains: No. 105/106 Odesa-Kyiv; No. 91/92 Lviv-Kyiv; No. 29/30 Kyiv-Uzhhorod; No. 12 Lviv-Odesa and No. 27/28 Kyiv-Chop.
Tickets for these flights will not be available at ticket offices.
The new rules will not apply to flights with special ticket reserves for military personnel.
Ukrzaliznytsia also noted that it is continuing to work on introducing authorization in the app via BankID.
