View source for Baikal–Amur Mainline

{{Short description|Russian rail road route}}
{{Infobox rail line
| box_width        = 300px
| name             = Baikal–Amur Mainline
| other_name       = 
| native_name      = Байкало-Амурская магистраль
| native_name_lang = ru
| color            = {{rcr|RZD}}
| logo             = 
| logo_width       = 
| logo_alt         = 
| image            = File:3TE25K2M-0001 with train.jpg
| image_width      = 300px
| image_alt        = 
| caption          = RZD [[3TE25K2M]] hauling freight at the Baikal–Amur Mainline
| type             = {{ubl|[[Regional rail]]|[[Freight rail]]}}
| system           = {{ubl|[[East Siberian Railway]] (Tayshet–	Khani)|[[Far Eastern Railway]] (Khani–Sovetskaya Gavan)}}
| status           = Operational
| locale           = {{ubl|[[Eastern Siberia]]|[[Russian Far East]]}}
| start            = [[Tayshet railway station|Tayshet]]
| end              = [[Sovetskaya Gavan]]
| continuesfrom    = [[Trans-Siberian Railway]]
| stations         = 
| routes           = 
| daily_ridership  = 
| ridership2       = 
| planopen         = <!--{{Start date|YYYY|MM|DD|df=y}}-->
| open             = <!--{{Start date|YYYY|MM|DD|df=y}}-->
| yearcommenced    = <!--{{Start date|YYYY|MM|DD|df=y}}-->
| yearcompleted    = <!--{{Start date|YYYY|MM|DD|df=y}}-->
| close            = <!--{{Start date|YYYY|MM|DD|df=y}}-->
| event1label      = 
| event1           = 
| event2label      = 
| event2           = 
| event3label      = 
| event3           = 
| owner            = [[Russian Railways]]
| operator         = [[Russian Railways]]
| character        = 
| depot            = 
| stock            = 
| linelength_km    = 4,324
| linelength_mi    = 
| linelength       = 
| tracklength_km   = 
| tracklength_mi   = 
| tracklength      = 
| tracks           = 2–1
| gauge            = {{track gauge|1520mm|lk=on|al=on}}
| old_gauge        = 
| load_gauge       = 
| minradius        = 
| racksystem       = 
| routenumber      = 
| linenumber       = 
| electrification  = 25kV 50Hz AC [[overhead line]]s
| speed_km/h       = 
| speed_mph        = 
| speed            = 
| signalling       = 
| elevation_m      = 
| elevation_ft     = 
| elevation        = 
| website          = 
| map              = {{Baikal–Amur Mainline|inline=yes}}
| map_name         = 
| map_state        = collapsed
| embedded         = 
}}
The '''Baikal–Amur Mainline''' ({{langx|ru|Байкало-Амурская магистраль}}, {{lang|ru|БАМ}}, {{lang|ru-Latn|Baikalo-Amurskaya magistral'}}, {{lang|ru-Latn|BAM}}) is a {{Track gauge| 1520 mm}} [[Russian gauge|broad-gauge]] [[railway]] line in [[Russia]]. Traversing [[Eastern Siberia]] and the [[Russian Far East]], the {{convert|4,324|km|mi|abbr=on}}-long BAM runs about {{convert|610|to|770|km|mi|abbr=on}} north of and parallel to the [[Trans-Siberian Railway]].

The [[Soviet Union]] built the BAM as a strategic alternative route to the Trans–Siberian Railway, seen as vulnerable especially along the sections close to the border with [[China]]. The BAM cost $14 billion, and it was built with special, durable tracks since much of it ran over [[permafrost]]. Due to the severe terrain, weather, length and cost, Soviet general secretary [[Leonid Brezhnev]] described BAM in 1974 as "the construction project of the century".<ref name="brown">{{cite book |editor1-last= Brown |editor1-first= Dale M. |editor2-last= Mann |editor2-first= Martin |title= Library of Nations: The Soviet Union |year= 1985 |publisher= [[Time Life Books]] |location= [[Alexandria, Virginia]] |isbn= 0-8094-5327-4 |url= https://archive.org/details/sovietunion00time }}</ref>

If the permafrost layer that supports the BAM railway line were to melt, the railway would collapse and sink into [[bog|peat bog]] layers that cannot bear its weight. In 2016 and 2018 there were reports about climate change and damage to buildings and infrastructure as a result of thawing permafrost.<ref>
{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2016/oct/14/thawing-permafrost-destroying-arctic-cities-norilsk-russia |title=Slow-motion wrecks: how thawing permafrost is destroying Arctic cities |work=The Guardian |date=14 October 2016 |access-date=18 October 2019 |quote=Valery Grebenets of Moscow State University's department of cryolithology and glaciology teaches his students 13 'horror stories' about thawing permafrost, including buckling roads and railways [...]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.arctictoday.com/permafrost-thaw-threatens-millions-arctic-residents-infrastructure/ |title=Permafrost thaw threatens millions of Arctic residents and their infrastructure |work=Arctic Today |date=14 December 2018 |access-date=18 October 2019 |quote=The study found that in the long list of vulnerable manmade structures, railroads carry some of the highest risks for damage from permafrost thaw.}}</ref>

==Route==
[[File:Transsib international.svg|thumb|<div style="text-align:left">Map of major railways in Russia, with [[Trans-Siberian Railway]] shown in red, the Baikal-Amur Mainline in green and the [[Amur–Yakutsk Mainline]] (including "Little BAM") shown in orange</div>|300px|left]]
The BAM departs from the Trans-Siberian railway at [[Tayshet]], then crosses the [[Angara River]] at [[Bratsk]] and the [[Lena River]] at [[Ust-Kut]], proceeds past [[Severobaikalsk]] at the northern tip of [[Lake Baikal]], past [[Tynda]] and [[Khani, Sakha Republic|Khani]], crosses the [[Amur River]] at [[Komsomolsk-on-Amur]] and finally reaches the [[Pacific Ocean]] at [[Sovetskaya Gavan]]. There are 21 tunnels along the line, with a total length of {{convert|47|km|mi|abbr=on}}. There are also more than 4,200 bridges, with a total length of over {{convert|400|km|sigfig=2}}.<ref name=yates>{{cite book |url=http://trailblazer-guides.com/books/ |author1=Yates, Athol |author2=Zvegintzov, Nicholas |title=Siberian BAM Guide: Rail, Rivers & Road'' (see excerpt)'' |year=1995 |edition=2, 2001 |publisher=Trailblazer Publications |location=England |isbn=1-873756-18-6}}</ref>

Of the whole route, only the western Tayshet-[[Taksimo]] sector of {{convert|1,469|km|mi|abbr=on}} is electrified. The route is largely single-track, although the reservation is wide enough for double-tracking for its full length, in the case of eventual duplication. The unusual thing about the railway is that it is electrified with a 27.5 kV, 50&nbsp;Hz catenary minimum height at {{convert|6.5|m|ftin}} above top of the rails to suit double-stacking under the overhead wires on the [[Russian gauge]] tracks, which requires rolling stock to be modified for service on the railway.

At Tynda the route is crossed by the [[Amur–Yakutsk Mainline]], which runs north to [[Neryungri]] and [[Tommot]], with an extension to [[Nizhny Bestyakh]] opened in 2019.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://siberiantimes.com/other/others/news/siberias-amazing-new-railway-the-permafrost-express-opens-to-passengers-this-month/ |title=Siberia's amazing new railway - the 'Permafrost Express' - opens to passengers this month |publisher=The Siberian Times |date=22 July 2019 |access-date=25 January 2023}}</ref> The original section of the AYaM connecting the Trans-Siberian at Bamovskaya with the BAM at Tynda is also referred to as the "Little BAM".

During the winter the passenger trains go from [[Moscow]] past [[Tayshet]] and [[Tynda]] to [[Neryungri]] and [[Tommot]] and there are also a daily trains from Tynda to [[Komsomolsk-on-Amur]] and from Komsomolsk-on-Amur to [[Sovetskaya Gavan]] on the [[Pacific Ocean]] via [[Vanino]] (''"Vladivostok-Sovetskaya Gavan"'' train No.351Э). Travel time from Tayshet to Tynda is 48 hours.<ref name="rzd.ru">{{cite web |url=http://rzd.ru/ |title=Новости компании |trans-title=company's news |language=Russian |access-date=2014-02-05 |archive-date=2012-12-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121225180217/http://rzd.ru/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> Travel time from Tynda to Komsomolsk-on-Amur is 36 hours.<ref name="rzd.ru"/> Travel time from Komsomolsk-on-Amur to Sovetskaya Gavan is 13 hours.<ref name="rzd.ru"/>

There are ten tunnels along the BAM railway, totaling {{convert|30|km|abbr=off}} of route. They include:<ref name="Archived copy">{{Cite web |url=https://www.eng.rzd.ru/statice/public/en?STRUCTURE_ID=4321 |title=Baikal-Amur Main Line &#124; Russian Railways |access-date=2020-05-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170418181627/http://eng.rzd.ru/statice/public/en?STRUCTURE_ID=4321 |archive-date=2017-04-18 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
* [[Baikalsky tunnel]] {{convert|6685|m|mi}}<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.rbth.com/travel/2016/15/01/bam_how_to_get_the_most_out_of_a_journey_on_siberias_other_railroad |title = BAM! How to get the most out of a journey on Siberia's other railroad |website=www.rbth.com |date = 15 January 2016 |access-date=6 December 2023}}</ref>
* [[Severomuysky Tunnel]] {{convert|15343|m|mi}}
* [[Kodar Tunnell]] {{convert|1981|m|mi}}
* [[Dusse Alin Tunnel]] {{convert|1852|m|mi}}
* [[Korshunovsky tunnel]] {{convert|950|m}}
These are among the longest tunnels in Russia.

In addition, the route crosses 11 full-flowing rivers (including the [[Lena River|Lena]], [[Amur River|Amur]], [[Zeya River|Zeya]], [[Vitim River|Vitim]], [[Olyokma River|Olyokma]], [[Selemdzha River|Selemdzha]] and [[Bureya (river)|Bureya]]).<ref name="Archived copy"/> In total, 2230 large and small bridges were built on it.

==History==

===Early plans and start of construction===
The route of the present-day BAM first came under consideration in the 1880s as an option for the eastern section of the planned Trans-Siberian railway.

In the 1930s, [[labor-camp]] inmates, in particular from the [[Bamlag]] camp of the [[Gulag]] system, built the section from Tayshet to [[Bratsk]]. In a confusing transfer of names, the label ''BAM'' applied from 1933 to 1935 to the project to double-track the Trans-Siberian east of Lake Baikal, constructed largely using forced labor.<ref name=shabad>{{cite book |author1=Shabad, Theodore  |author2=Mote, Victor L |title=Gateway to Siberian Resources (The BAM) |pages=71–73 |publisher=Halstead Press/John Wiley |location=New York |year=1977 |isbn=0-470-99040-6}}</ref>

1945 saw the finalisation of plans for upgrading the BAM for diesel or electric instead of steam traction, and for the heavier axle-loads of eight-axle oil tankers to carry new-found oil from Western Siberia.<ref>
Compare:
{{cite book
| last1                 = Gaidar
| first1                = Yegor
| author-link1          = Yegor Gaidar
| title                 = Collapse of an Empire: Lessons for Modern Russia
| url                   = https://books.google.com/books?id=bDSfnxYjVwAC
| translator                = Antonina W. Bouis
| publisher             = Brookings Institution Press
| date      = 2010
| page                  = 100
| isbn                  = 9780815731153
| access-date            = 2015-12-05
| quote                 = The first oil well in Western Siberia was opened in September 1953.73 Large-scale geological discoveries came in the period 1961-65 [...].
}}
</ref> The upgrading required 25 years and 3,000 surveyors and designers, although much of the redesign work (particularly as regards the central section) took place between 1967 and 1974.<ref name=shabad/>

===Construction project of the century===
[[File:RIAN archive 463353 Rally on occasion of arrival of construction team.jpg|thumb|left|A rally in [[Ust-Ilimsk]], [[Irkutsk Region]], on the occasion of the arrival of a building team for construction of the Baikal-Amur Railway. 1979.]]
In March 1974, Soviet [[General secretary|General Secretary]] [[Leonid Brezhnev|Brezhnev]] proposed that the BAM would be one of the two major projects in the [[Tenth Five-Year Plan (Soviet Union)|Tenth Five Year Plan]] (1976–80).<ref name=shabad/> He famously stated that "BAM will be constructed with clean hands only!" and firmly rejected the suggestion to again use [[prison labor]]. A few weeks later, he challenged the Young Communist League ([[Komsomol]]) to join in "the construction project of the century".<ref name=brown/> The 17th [[Komsomol]] congress (held in April 1974) announced the BAM as a Komsomol [[shock construction project]], created the central Komsomol headquarters of BAM construction, and appointed [[Dmitry Nikolayevich Filippov|Dmitry Filippov]] the chief of the headquarters.

By the end of 1974, perhaps 50,000 young people of the 156,000 young people who applied had moved to the BAM service area. In 1975 and 1976, 28 new settlements were inaugurated and 70 new bridges, including the Amur and Lena bridges, were erected. And while {{convert|110|mi|km}} of track was laid, the track-laying rate would have needed to nearly triple to meet the 1983 deadline.<ref name=shabad/>

In September 1984, a "[[golden spike]]" was hammered into place, connecting the eastern and western sections of the BAM. The Western media was not invited to attend this historic event as Soviet officials did not want any comments about the line's operational status. In reality, only one third of the BAM's track was fully operational for civilians, due to military reasons.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Ward, C.J. |title=Selling the "Project of the Century": Perceptions of the Baikal-Amur Mainline Railway (BAM) in the Soviet Press, 1974–1984 |journal=Canadian Slavonic Papers |year=2001 |volume=43 |pages=75–95|doi=10.1080/00085006.2001.11092272 |s2cid=129139539 }}</ref>

The BAM was again declared complete in 1991. By then, the total cost to build the line was [[United States Dollar|US$]]14 [[billion]] ([[Russian ruble|RU₽]]106 [[trillion]]).

===Crisis===
Beginning in the mid-1980s, the BAM project attracted increasing criticism for having been poorly planned. Infrastructure and basic services like running water were often not in place when workers arrived. At least 60 [[boomtown]]s developed along the route, but today many of these places are deserted [[ghost town]]s and unemployment in the area is high. The building of the BAM has also been criticised for its complete lack of environmental protection.<ref>{{cite book |author=Victor L. Mote |chapter=BAM after the fanfare: the unbearable ecumene |editor=John M. Steward |title=The Soviet environment: problems, policies and politics |publisher=Cambridge |year=1990 |pages=40–54 |isbn=9780521414180}}</ref>

When the [[dissolution of the Soviet Union|Soviet Union was dissolved]], numerous mining and industrial projects in the region were cancelled and the BAM was greatly underutilized until the late 1990s, running at a large operational deficit.{{citation needed|date=April 2015}}

In 1996, the BAM as a single operational body was dissolved, with the western section from [[Tayshet]] to [[Khani, Sakha Republic|Khani]] becoming the [[East Siberian Railway]] and the rest transferred to the management of the [[Far Eastern Railway]].{{citation needed|date=April 2015}}

During the [[Russo-Ukrainian War]], on November 30, 2023, an explosion occurred in the [[Severomuysky Tunnel]]. A second explosion happened soon thereafter on the bypass used as backup for the tunnel. The [[Security Service of Ukraine]] claimed responsibility for the explosions.<ref>{{cite web |url =https://www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/2023/12/1/7431210/ |title=Ukraine's Security Service blows up railway linking Russia and China |publisher=[[Ukrainska Pravda]] |date=2023-12-01 |access-date=2023-12-01}}</ref>

==Current situation and future prospects==
{{update|section|date=June 2019}}
{{Baikal Amur Mainline extension}}
{{Selikhino-Nakhodka line}}

A major improvement was the opening of the {{convert|15.34|km|adj=on}} [[Severomuysky Tunnel]] on 5 December 2003. It is up to 1.5&nbsp;kilometres (nearly 1 mile) deep. Construction took 27 years to complete. Prior to this, the corresponding route segment was {{convert|54|km|mi|abbr=on}} long, with heavy slopes necessitating the use of auxiliary [[bank engine]] locomotives.

With the resources boom of recent years and improving economic conditions in Russia, use of the line is increasing. Plans exist for the development of mining areas such as ''[[Udokan Range|Udokanskoye]]'' and ''Chineyskoye'' near [[Novaya Chara]], as well as one of [[Eurasia]]'s largest coal deposits at [[Elginskoye coal mine|Elginskoye]] (Elga) in the [[Sakha Republic]] (Yakutia). In connection with this, a number of branch lines have been built or are under construction.

In January 2012 the Russian mining company [[Mechel]] completed the construction of the 320-kilometre-long branch line to Elginskoye, branching from the BAM station Ulak, west of the [[Zeya River]] crossing in northwestern [[Amur Oblast]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mechel.com/press/press/elga_coal_complex?rid=25190&oo=1&fnid=68&newWin=0&apage=3&nm=120532&fxsl=view.xsl|archive-url=https://archive.today/20141017094530/http://www.mechel.com/press/press/elga_coal_complex?rid=25190&oo=1&fnid=68&newWin=0&apage=3&nm=120532&fxsl=view.xsl|url-status=dead|archive-date=October 17, 2014|title=Mechel Reports Finishing Laying Railway Tracks to Elga Coal Complex|website=www.mechel.com|access-date=16 August 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mechel.com/press/press/elga_coal_complex?rid=25190&oo=1&fnid=68&newWin=0&apage=1&nm=121558&fxsl=view.xsl|archive-url=https://archive.today/20141017094532/http://www.mechel.com/press/press/elga_coal_complex?rid=25190&oo=1&fnid=68&newWin=0&apage=1&nm=121558&fxsl=view.xsl|url-status=dead|archive-date=October 17, 2014|title=Mechel Reports Obtaining Federal Railway Transport Agency's Approval for Operating Elga Deposit Railway|website=www.mechel.com|access-date=16 August 2017}}</ref> The branch line connects the [[Elginskoye coal mine]] to the Russian railroad network.

Currently under discussion is the construction of a [[Sakhalin Tunnel|bridge or tunnel]] under the [[Strait of Tartary]] to [[Sakhalin Island]], with the possibility of the further construction of a [[Sakhalin–Hokkaidō Tunnel|bridge or tunnel from Sakhalin to Japan]]. A tunnel from the mainland to Sakhalin was previously begun under [[Joseph Stalin]], but was abandoned after his death. A second attempt in 2003 was also postponed during construction. Current economic conditions make the short-term completion of the tunnel doubtful, although Russian president [[Dmitry Medvedev]] announced in November 2008 his support for a revival of this project.<ref>[[PrimaMedia]]: [http://primamedia.ru/news/show/?id=85418 Президент России хочет остров Сахалин соединить с материком] (Russian)</ref>

The BAM now also attracts the interest of Western railway enthusiasts, with some tourist activity on the line.<ref name=yates/>

Also, the BAM itself extension from Komsomolsk-on-Amur to Magadan (Okhotsk coastal route), full length electrification, full length track doubling, and double-stacking under the overhead wires on the Russian gauge tracks (with well cars to make 6.15m height) are proposed.

{|align=center
! Tayshet diversion line<br />(Tayshet bypass)
! Severo-Sibirskaya Mainline
! Lena-Kamchatka Mainline
|- valign=top
|
{{Tayshet diversion line}}
|
{{Severo-Sibirskaya Mainline}}
{{Ust–Ilimsk branch}}
{{Novochunka branch}}
{{Reshoty-Yarki Line}}
|
{{Lena-Kamchatka Mainline}}
|}

==Along the BAM==
[[File:Baikal Amur Mainline map EN OSM 20170129.svg|thumb|Major stations of the BAM]]
[[File:Rail Terminal and Station Tynda.JPG|thumb|Tynda, the "capital" of BAM]]
'''Tayshet''' to '''Lake Baikal''' {{convert|1064|km}}:<ref name=yates/>
{|
|-
| {{0|0,00}}0 || [[Tayshet]]: about {{convert|300|km|abbr=off}} east of [[Krasnoyarsk]], [[Trans-Siberian Railway]], [[M53 highway (Russia)|M53 highway]] to Irkutsk
|-
| {{0|0,}}129 || Sosnovye Rodniki: timber port; [[Chuna River]]
|-
| {{0|0,}}142 || Chuna
|-
| {{0|0,}}269 || [[Vikhorevka]]: railway administration
|-
| {{0|0,}}282 || Anzebi: {{convert|20|km|adj=on}} spur line to [[Bratsk]] 
|-
| {{0|0,}}330 || Railway runs across the top of the [[Bratsk Dam]]
|-
| {{0|0,}}463 || Vidim
|-
| {{0|0,}}546 || Sredneilimskaya on the [[Ust-Ilimsk]] reservoir
|-
| {{0|0,}}554 || [[Zheleznogorsk-Ilimsky]]: mining town
|-
| {{0|0,}}575 || Khrebetovaya: branch line north to [[Ust-Ilimsk]] (see branches below); enters Lena basin; [[Kuta River]]
|-
| {{0|0,}}715 || [[Ust-Kut]]: port on the [[Lena River]] where goods are loaded onto boats for transport north; end of the line until 1974
|-
| {{0|0,}}736 || Lena Vostochnaya: east of the Lena, start of the BAM proper from 1974; route turns east southeast
|-
| {{0|0,}}786 || Zvyozdnaya: first new town built on the BAM
|-
| {{0|0,}}890 || Kirenga: {{convert|12|km|abbr=off}} east is the larger town of Magistralnyy; [[Kirenga River]] and bridge
|-
| {{0|0,}}931 || Ul'kan: on the Ulkan branch of the Kirenga
|-
| 1,005 || Delbichenda: last stop before the {{convert|6.7|km|adj=on}} Baikal Mountain Tunnel (between 1979 and 1984 there was a {{convert|15|km|adj=on}} bypass over the mountain)
|-
| 1,014 || Daben
|-
| 1,064 || Lake Baikal
|}

'''Lake Baikal''' to '''Tynda''' {{convert|1300|km}}:
{|
| 1,064 || [[Severobaykalsk]]; four small tunnels along the lake
|-
| 1,104 || [[Nizhneangarsk]]; leave Lake Baikal, northeast along the [[Upper Angara River]]
valley
|-
| 1,257 || [[Novy Uoyan]]: there is talk of building a railroad south from here to the Trans-Siberian; enters Severomuysk Mountains; much permafrost from here to Tynda
|-
| 1,385–1,400 || [[Severomuysky Tunnel]]: {{convert|15.7|km}} long, very difficult construction; leaves mountain; scenic section with mountains to north and south; much fog
|-
| 1,484 || [[Taksimo]]: end of electrified section; [[Muya River]]
|-
| 1,548 || Shivery: leaves [[Buryat Republic]]; [[Vitim]] River
|-
| 1,577 || Kuanda: official 'completion' of the BAM was celebrated here in September 1984; valley into mountains
|-
| 1,664 || Kodar: Kodar mountains, {{convert|1.9|km}} tunnel
|-
| 1,734 || [[Novaya Chara]]
|-
| 1,879 || Khani: the only BAM town in the [[Sakha Republic]]; northernmost point on the line; route turns south-southeast along the [[Olyokma River]]; enters Amur basin
|}

'''Tynda''' to '''Komsomolsk''' {{convert|1473|km}}:
{|
| 2,364 || [[Tynda]]: Branch [[Amur–Yakutsk Mainline|railway]] and [[M56 Lena highway (Russia)|highway M56]] north to Yakutsk; little BAM south to the Trans-Siberian
|-
| 2,704 || Bridge over [[Zeya Reservoir]]; route heads southeast
|-
| 3,205 || [[Bureya River]] bridge
|-
| 3,315 || [[Novy Urgal]]: Branch south to Trans-Siberian
|-
| 3,403 || east to [[Dusse-Alin Tunnel]]; northeast up the [[Amgun River]]
|-
| 3,633 || Postyshevo: east
|-
| 3,697 || [[Evoron Lake]]; southeast to km 3,837: [[Komsomolsk-on-Amur]]
|}

'''Komsomolsk''' to '''Sovetskaya Gavan''' {{convert|486|km}}:

This section was completed by prisoners during [[World War II]], except for the {{convert|19|km|adj=on}} section east of Komsomolsk which was completed in 1974.
{|
| 3,819 || Komsomolsk; {{convert|1734|m|adj=on}} [[Amur River]] Bridge
|-
| {{0|00}}0 || Pivan (new zero point)
|-
| {{0}}51 || Selikhin: Branch
|-
| {{0}}95–340 || [[Sikhote Alin Mountains]]
|-
| 403 || [[Mongokhto]]
|-
| 441 || [[Vanino, Khabarovsk Krai|Vanino]]: port, [[Vanino-Kholmsk train ferry|train ferry to Sakhalin Island]], practical end of passenger service
|-
| 467 || [[Sovetskaya Gavan]]: naval base
|}
In April 2008 the state-owned Bamtonnelstroy corporation started work on the new {{convert|3.91|km|adj=on}} single-track [[Kuznetsovsky Tunnel]] to bypass an older tunnel built in 1943–1945.<ref>[http://www.bamts.ru/eng/pro/futurpro/kuznecovskiy.php ''Construction of the new Kuznetsovsky tunnel'', Bamtonnelstroy press service, undated] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140306010142/http://www.bamts.ru/eng/pro/futurpro/kuznecovskiy.php |date=2014-03-06 }}. Retrieved: 31 March 2011].</ref> It was opened in December 2012. The old tunnel had difficult gradients; building the new tunnel relieved a bottleneck on the BAM.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.railwaygazette.com/news/projects-infrastructure/single-view/view/kuznetsovsk-tunnel-shortens-the-bam-corridor.html|access-date=2 February 2013|title=Kuznetsovsk tunnel shortens the BAM corridor|work=[[Railway Gazette International]]}}</ref> The 59.8 bn roubles (about $1.93 bn) project included {{convert|20|km}} of new track. In 2010, [[Vladimir Yakunin|Yakunin]] had said, the stretch between Komsomolsk and Sovetskaya Gavan was the weakest link on the BAM, which, he said, could be carrying 100 million tons of freight a year in 2050.<ref>[http://en.portnews.ru/news/21449/  ''Freight volumes via BAM to reach 100m tons a year by 2050'', Portnews.ru, St Petersburg, 24 March, 2010]. Retrieved: 31 March 2011].</ref>

===Branches===
*  575: Khrebtovaya to Ust-Ilimsk, {{convert|214|km}}: opened in 1970, it runs northeast to serve the [[Ust-Ilimsk Dam]].
*1,257: Novy Uoyan: possible start of line south on east side to Lake Baikal.
*2,364: Tynda to the Trans-Siberian at Bamovskaya, {{convert|180|km}} (the 'Little BAM'): this branch was built by prisoners in 1933–37, torn up in 1942 and its rails shipped to the front and rebuilt in 1972–75.
*2,364: Tynda to Yakutsk: see [[Amur–Yakutsk Mainline]].
*3,315: Novy Urgal to the Trans-Siberian at Izvestovskaya, {{convert|328|km}}: in the [[Bureya River]] basin, it was built mostly by Japanese POWs. There is a {{convert|32|km}} branch north from Novy Urgal to the [[Chegdomyn]] coal fields.
*3,837: Komsomolsk south to Khabarovsk, {{convert|374|km}}; on east side (flood plain) of the Amur. {{convert|99|km}} south: [[Lake Bolon]].
*   51 (line km restart at Komsomolsk): Selikhin to Cherny Mys, {{convert|122|km}}: north along the Amur. Built 1950–53, it was planned to extend this to a tunnel to Sakhalin Island. There is talk of restarting it.

==The BAM road==
Running approximately alongside the railway track is the BAM road, a railway service track. It is said to be in a very poor state, with collapsed bridges, dangerous river crossings, severe potholes and "unrelenting energy-sapping bogs". The narrow, dilapidated Vitim River Bridge (aka Kuandinsky Bridge<!--coordinate 56.22333613711658, 115.73561901760866-->)<ref>{{cite web |url=https://driving.ca/ford/auto-news/news/watching-an-suv-cross-this-narrow-no-guardrail-bridge-is-nerve-wracking |title=Watching an SUV cross this narrow, no-guardrail bridge is nerve-wracking |last=Maronese |first=Nicholas |work=Driving.ca |publisher=[[Postmedia Network]] |date=2018-01-25 |access-date=2022-01-14}}</ref> that crosses the [[Vitim (river)|Vitim river]] has attracted attention since its first appearance on social media in 2009.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.thedrive.com/news/41541/this-rotting-siberian-bridge-is-one-of-the-worlds-sketchiest-river-crossings |title=This Rotting Siberian Bridge Is One of the World's Sketchiest River Crossings |last=Holderith |first=Peter |work=Thedrive.com |publisher=Brookline Media |date=2021-07-16 |access-date=2022-01-14}}</ref> The passage of the bridge is forbidden since 2016 but remains a common road for individuals to reach the town of Koanda<!--coordinates 56.32571999966607, 116.0804303340659-->.<ref>[https://novayagazeta.eu/articles/2024/02/13/voda-iz-reki-otoplenie-drovami-samyi-opasnyi-most-v-rossii Вода из реки, отопление дровами, самый опасный мост в России] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240213143125/https://novayagazeta.eu/articles/2024/02/13/voda-iz-reki-otoplenie-drovami-samyi-opasnyi-most-v-rossii |date=2024-02-13 }}, novayagazeta.eu, 13 February 2024</ref>

The road is passable only by the most extreme [[off-road vehicle]]s and [[Dual-sport motorcycle|adventure motorcycle]]s. In 2009, a group of three experienced motorcycle riders took a whole month to travel from [[Komsomolsk-on-Amur|Komsomolsk]] (in the east) to [[Lake Baikal]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.motorcyclenews.com/news/2011/august/aug1811-new-mcn-adventure/ |title=MCN Adventure |date=August 2011 |access-date=6 December 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=533442 |title=The BAM Road - ultimate test of man and machine - Adventure Rider |website=www.advrider.com |access-date=16 August 2017}}</ref>

==Honors==
[[Main belt asteroid]] [[2031 BAM]], discovered in 1969 by [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] astronomer [[Lyudmila Chernykh]], is named in honor of the builders of the BAM.<ref>{{cite book | last = Schmadel | first = Lutz D. | title = Dictionary of Minor Planet Names | page = 164 | edition = 5th | year = 2003 | publisher = Springer Verlag | location = New York | isbn = 3-540-00238-3}}</ref>

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:Tynda rail.jpg|Railway station at [[Tynda]]
File:Vikhorevka.jpg|Railway station at [[Vikhorevka]]
File:Fevralsk_train_station,_Amur_region,_Russia.jpg|Railway station at [[Fevralsk]]
File:Tayshet_old.jpg|Old station building at [[Tayshet]]
File:Railway troops on the construction of BAM-2. July 2022.png|Railway troops on the construction of BAM-2. July 2022
</gallery>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Baikal Amur Mainline}}
{{Portal|Railways|Siberia}}
* {{Wikivoyage inline|Baikal-Amur Mainline}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20160309162206/http://losapos.com/bam%20railway Construction history of the BAM]
* [http://bam.railways.ru/eng/ Private homepage about the BAM (section in English)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110212023415/http://bam.railways.ru/eng/ |date=2011-02-12 }}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090628141501/http://rt.tv/Top_News/2009-05-25/BAM__Soviet_construction_project_of_a_century.html BAM: Soviet construction project of a century]
* [http://trailblazer-guides.com/book/siberian-bam-guide BAM Guide on Trailblazer Publications website]
* [http://travel.nytimes.com/2012/08/12/travel/the-other-siberian-railroad.html?ref=travel NYTimes 2012 travel feature]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3wD7vBOmao&lc=UgyCVtHTaRSumkKj2v14AaABAg The Baikal Amur Mainline is a popular adventure motorcycle travel route]

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Baikal-Amur Mainline}}
[[Category:Gulag industry]]
[[Category:Railway lines in Russia]]
[[Category:Rail transport in the Soviet Union]]
[[Category:Rail transport in Siberia]]
[[Category:Rail transport in the Russian Far East]]
[[Category:1520 mm gauge railways in Russia]]
[[Category:Chief Directorate of Railroad Construction Camps]]
[[Category:Megaprojects]]
[[Category:Rail transport in the Jewish Autonomous Oblast]]