An additional 7,500 food packages have been distributed to Ukrainian railway workers. The donations have come from a collaborative effort. Partners include the Trade Union of Railwaymen and Transport Construction Workers of Ukraine and the Global Ukraine Rail Task Force (GURTF). The trade union has thanked humanitarian allies, who have helped ensure that railway workers are not left to face the war and its consequences without basic support. 

The donations have been collected, funded, and distributed by affiliated international organisations. Berlin-based WE Aid has been leading logistical support. The German group is affiliated with the global United Way community support organisation. Britain’s Rail Partners, a corporate-level association, is representing UK support. Help from national administrations includes Norway’s railway authority, Bane NOR, and Swedish Railways SJ. Industry participation is being coordinated from the Brussels offices of ALLRAIL, the pan-European non-profit association of independent passenger rail companies.

Basic necessities in short supply

Global Ukraine Rail Task Force was set up by the international arm of United Way, a huge international network of over 1,800 nonprofit fundraising affiliates. Through the offices of ALLRAIL in Brussels and the network of Berlin-based WE Aid, the GURTF has supported railway workers throughout the Russian aggression. Railway workers have often been called upon to work under fire despite being non-combatants. Early in the invasion, a driver filmed a Russian tank detachment crossing the railway lines in front of their oncoming train.

Nevertheless, basic necessities have been in short supply, and food parcels have been gratefully received. According to GURTF sources, generous corporate and individual donations in Autumn 2023 allowed the distribution of 7,500 additional food packages to rail sector workers and their families in the warzone. Other support initiatives have been organised around Europe, including well-organised initiatives from the UK freight and passenger sectors.

Continuing fund-raising drive

“As colleagues in the global rail sector, we stand in solidarity with our counterparts in Ukraine as they face the unjust aggression from Russia”, said a GURTF statement. “We support their courage and resilience in these challenging times. Our thoughts are with them as we hope for a swift resolution to this conflict. Solidarity comes not only from all of us in the rail community but from citizens around the world who stand in support of freedom.”

However, the Global Ukraine Rail Task Force says that the railway workers in Ukraine still need support. They require food packages, protective equipment, and, most ominously, first-aid kits for trains. The agency’s partners are co-ordinating a continuing fund-raising drive administered through the Berlin office of WE Aid. The railway network in Ukraine has been repeatedly targeted during the war.