Train Travel โto Key Donbas Citiesโ Suspended Amid โขEscalating Russian Attacks
POKROVSK, Ukraine – Rail service to Slavyansk and Kramatorsk in the Donetskโ region has โคbeen suspended โฃindefinitely at the request of theโ donetsk โคRegional Military Administration, effectively halting a vital artery for civilian and military transport as Russian attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure intensify.Passengers are now beingโ diverted toโค buses at stations in the โneighboring kharkiv region -โข Barvinkove and Husarivka – with authorities citing increased safetyโฃ concerns.
The suspension brings โคaโ poignant โend to a chapter marked by both โheartbreak and hope at stations like Pokrovsk.Before the โfull-scale invasion, these platforms witnessed a bittersweet โขcycle of “love trains” – arrivals โคfilled with joyful reunions as wives, girlfriends, and loved ones greeted โขsoldiers, contrasted sharply โฃwith wrenching farewells punctuated by tearful promises of return. Now, a section of the Pokrovsk station, site of a devastating attack, remains largely abandoned, a grim memorialโ to the violence.
Since the start of the full-scale invasion,โ 37 Ukrainian railway workersโ have been killed and 221 โขwounded โin โขRussian attacks targeting โฃthe country’s rail network. The increased frequency of these attacks prompted the decisionโข to suspend direct trainโ service to the front-line cities, โขprioritizing passenger safetyโฃ despite โthe disruption.
(Photo: Stanislav Krupaล)