Transport in the Socialist Republic of Malgrave

Transport in the Socialist Republic of Malgrave was provided through a mixture of railways, national and local bus services, tramways, airports and autoways.

The Socialist Republic of Malgrave boasted a highly advanced transportation network comprised of highspeed railways, tramways, autoways, ferry services, international airports and urban metro surfaces. Historically, the country put a high importance on collectivist public transportation infrastructure over more individualistic forms of travel like private vehicle ownership and the country had an extensive rail and tramway network.

In part due to the cultural importance of public transportation, the country didn't have an extensive road network and what little existed was mostly associated with the armed forces. Roads were also used to service rural regions, although, this was mostly used as a way to transport goods from remote collective farms and mines to railway stations.

The Socialist Republic also maintained international flights, with MalAviation operating routes to several Mystrian nations.

History

As an effectively landlocked nation, the Socialist Republic of Malgrave maintained a series of challenges early in it's history which were compounded by the undeveloped nature of transport infrastructure in the region. It took immense effort for the Socialist Republic to effectively build a modern transport network from the ground up, and as a result transportation concerns formed the basis of many of the countries initial three-year plans.

Rail

Railways were the primary form of transportation for the majority of people within the Socialist Republic of Malgrave, a situation linked to the population density of the country and efforts that the government undertook to promote collectivist transportation solutions over forms which were seen as more individualistic and a waste of industrial resources. Railways were also seen as key to managing industrial operations, with specialised freight railways stretching across the country to ensure that goods flown in from overseas and goods destined for export could both reach their destination

MalRail operated the rail network within the Socialist Republic, and organised it into three distinct categories.

Commuter Rail

Commuter Rail was how MalRail referred to railways which operated at slower speed compared to high-speed rail services, and served stations on the outskirts of urban population centres before merging with the metro system. A number of regional rail services utilised old intercity highspeed rail routes to provide a slower and gentler intercity connection to customers, and these were often popular with tourists.

Urban Metro Rail

Urban Metro Rail was defined by MalRail, as a primarily underground rail service located entirely within an urban population centre. Commuter Rail services fed directly into urban metro rail services, an effort by RailMal to reduce pressure on stations caused by passenger transfers.

These services were commonly referred to as metro rail or metro by the majority of the population.

High-speed Rail

The Socialist Republic maintained three highspeed rail services which connected the country together. Constructed between 1971 and 1983 these lines have been greatly improved over the years, and still serve an important role for MalTra today.

Freight Rail

The Socialist Republic maintained a series of specialised freight routes across the country, a step undertaken to reduce delays for regular commercial rail traffic (freight trains breakdowns are more common and cause large delays) and due to national security concerns.

Trams

Cities in the Socialist Republic also enjoyed access to extensive tram and trolleybus networks which worked to compliment Metro and Commuter rail services. Since reunification these services have been absorbed into MalTra.

Buses

The Socialist Republic of Malgrave operated a number of buses, under the MalBus framework. Buses were more popular in rural parts of the Socialist Republic which were not served by high frequency rail services, and used to connect with parts of the country that had better access to these rail connections.

MalBus organised their network into the following sections.

Urban Bus

Urban Buses operated strictly within major urban hubs. They were designed to complement urban rail services, metro networks and trams operating within cities across the Socialist Republic. These services were used frequently by students and associated heavily with them.

Regional Buses

While the Socialist Republic was a highly urbanised country, a significant portion of the population lived within rural areas due to their employment in collective farms or remote mining operations. It was seen as inefficient to construct high-frequency rail routes to these remote regions, so instead buses were used to carry customers to less remote towns that received more consistent rail coverage.

Intercity Buses

MalBus operated a handful of intercity buses, although, these were mostly used by tourists as they were slower compared to rail services but often considerably cheaper and offered some interesting views.

Air Travel

Air Travel in the Socialist Republic of Malgrave was managed by MalAviation and split into two main categories.

Regional Air

Between 1938 and 1983 MalAviation operated limited air routes within the country to supply services to rural and regional provinces in the country, although, during the civil war these routes were highly regulated due to safety concerns.

International Air

As the Socialist Republic did not adhere to the policy of isolationism followed by the United Kingdom, the country started operating international flights from Rensk and other parts of the country in 1938. MalAviation was organised to run these services, and ran a large fleet consisting of modern aircraft and specialised airships for both commercial passenger operations and cargo freight.

MalAviation ran international flights between a specialised air corridor, with flights to Breheim being incredibly popular.

Autoways

The Socialist Republic viewed direct car ownership as a societal ill and Markist-Chmielist propaganda often portrayed it as selfish behaviour and a waste of resources better spent on advancing the revolution. The Socialist Republic put extensive importance on more collectivist public transport infrastructure, however, as this also included buses the country did maintain a small road network.

A majority of roads within the Socialist Republic were simple 2+1 roads, although, a few 2+2 roads did exist in areas that were typically associated with ferrying tourists around.

All intercity routes were paid through via tolls, a measure which further incentivised people away from private vehicles.