High-speed Sapsan trains between Moscow and St. Petersburg will depart every hour in both directions by the end of 2015, Russian Railways announced Wednesday.
The Sapsan, which was introduced in 2009, currently makes up to eight trips a day between the two cities. Traveling at a maximum speed of 250 kilometers an hour, the train can make the trip in just under four hours.
According to the statement, new tracks were built in the Moscow region in order to accommodate the train's increased frequency.
Prices are also set to decrease. Return tickets purchased at least 45 days in advance will cost 3,600 rubles ($80), Vedomosti business daily reported.
The company expects the changes to increase the number of passengers carried each year by Sapsan trains to some seven million, or up to 80 percent of all Moscow-St. Petersburg travelers.
