Tomsk, West Siberian economic region, Russia

🇷🇺 Tomsk is a city and the administrative centre of Tomsk Oblast in Russia, located on the Tom River.

Tomsk is considered one of the oldest towns in Siberia. It celebrated its 410th anniversary in 2014. The city is a notable educational and scientific centre with six state universities, over 100,000 students, and the oldest university in Siberia.

Energy generation Tomsk has the oldest electrical grid in Siberia. There are three power stations in the city: 1 TEC-1 (launched on January 1, 1896)

2 GRES-2 (launched on May 28, 1945)

3 TEC-3 (launched on October 29, 1988)

Tomsk consumes more electric energy than it produces. The bulk of the city's electric and thermal energy is produced by the GRES-2 (281 MWt) and TEC-3 (140 MWt) powerplants, belonging to Tomskenergo Inc. Tomsk supplements its energy needs with electricity generated at Seversk.

Education A large number of educational institutions in the city have contributed to making Tomsk a major centre for Russia's IT industry. Tomsk was one of the first cities in Russia to gain access to the Internet, which became available in the early 1990s owing to grants received by universities and scientific co-operation.

Tomsk has a number of prominent institutions of higher education, including: • Tomsk Polytechnic University, founded in 1896 and opened in 1900, the oldest technical university in Siberia. • Tomsk State University, the oldest university in Siberia (founded in 1878, opened in 1888). • Siberian State Medical University, founded in 1930. • Tomsk State Pedagogical University • Tomsk State University of Architecture and Construction • Tomsk State University of Control Systems and Radioelectronics • Tomsk Economics and Law University • Tomsk Institute of Business • Institute of Petroleum Geology and Geophysics, Siberian Branch of RAS • Institute of Petroleum Chemistry, Siberian Branch of RAS • Institute for Monitoring Climatic and Ecological Systems, Siberian Branch of RAS • Republican Scientific-Technical Center at ISPMS SB RAS • Institute of Atmospheric Optics, Siberian Branch of RAS • High Current Electronics Institute, Siberian Branch of RAS • Institute of Strength Physics and Materials Science SB RAS • Siberian Research Institute of Agriculture and Peat • Tomsk National Research Medical Center, Siberian Branch of RAS.

Transport: Road • northern branch of the M53 federal road; • road R 398 to Kolpashevo; • road R 400 to Mariinsk; • Northern latitude highway Perm—Surgut—Tomsk (under construction).

Transport: Rail Tomsk is a small railway centre that is situated on the Tayga—Bely Yar line (Tomsk branch) of the Trans-Siberian Railway.

The main line of the Trans-Siberian railway, built in 1896, passes 50 km (31 mi) south of Tomsk and bypasses Tomsk. Access from Tomsk to the Trans-Siberian railway is available via the town of Tayga. A regional rail line links Tomsk with Tayga.

The Tomsk Railway existed as an independent entity until 1961. At the present time, the Tomsk line belongs to the West-Siberian Railway, branch of Russian Railways Corp. Trains link Tomsk to Anapa, Asino, Barnaul, Bely Yar, Moscow, Novokuznetsk, Novosibirsk, Sochi, and Tayga.

Public transportation The majority of inner-city and suburban transportation is provided by marshrutkas (routed taxis) and minibuses (mostly manufactured by PAZ, and serving about forty routes).

Additionally, the city has eleven proper bus routes, eight trolleybus lines (built in 1967), and five tram lines (constructed in 1949). Private taxis are also readily available.

Air transportation The city is served by Bogashevo Airport, which offers both domestic and international flights. Located 20 km from the city centre, the airport was renovated in 2013. The airport is home to offices for S7 Airlines, Aeroflot, Ural Airlines, Turukhan Airlines, NordStar Airlines, RusLine, Red Wings Airlines, ALROSA, and UTair Aviation.

Water Transportation There is a commercial and passenger port on the Tom River.