OREANDA-NEWS. July 25, 2014. At Moscow's Belorussia Station, a special ceremony was held to mark the departure of the 500th anniversary run of international train number 23/24 Moscow – Berlin – Paris, which is operated by the Federal Passenger Company, a subsidiary of Russian Railways.

The event was attended by Mikhail Akulov, Vice-President of Russian Railways and CEO of the Federal Passenger Company, and Boris Kiselevsky, Counsellor to the Embassy of the French Republic in the Russian Federation.

"Since the service began operating, it has covered a distance almost 400 times greater than the equator," said Mikhail Akulov in his speech. "It is important for us that the comfort and quality of services which create a good feeling and mood among passengers are associated with the fact that they are travelling by rail on international routes developed by Russian Railways. We support these routes through our active role and participation in the railway operations of other European countries and we are grateful to the railways in Belarus, Poland, Germany and France for the positive response to our proposals to improve the quality of passenger services."

Akulov also said that in Autumn 2014, it is planned to launch new RIC cars in the formation of train number 23/24. Each compartment in these carriages will be equipped with individual climate control, dimmer switches and conductor calling. The carriage will also have a shower for passengers. In addition, the train will have a new security feature whereby every compartment can be opened by a special card.

Boris Kiselevsky expressed confidence in further productive cooperation in the railway transport sector and stressed that the Moscow – Paris train was an excellent and important symbol of relations between Russia and France.

As part of celebrations at Belorussia Station, Mikhail Akulov congratulated the first passenger to have booked a ticket on the 500th run and presented him with a gold card from the Company's loyalty programme, RZD Bonus.

The Federal Passenger Company has also decided to credit double points to all passengers participating in the RZD Bonus loyalty programme who have booked a ticket on the 500th run.

In addition, the Federal Passenger Company's management held business meetings with foreign partners in the European capitals through which international train number 23/24 Moscow – Berlin – Paris in honour of its 500th run.