The GE diesel locomotives are to be serviced in Melitopol at a existing rail depot staffed by Ukrainian machinists trained this summer at GE’s factory in Kazakhstan.

The GE diesel locomotives are to be serviced in Melitopol at a existing rail depot staffed by Ukrainian machinists trained this summer at GE’s factory in Kazakhstan. The service depot will be a boost for this southern Zaporizhia city that once was the rail “gateway to Crimea.” Until 2014, 80% of trains bound for Crimea passed through Melitopol, 120 km north of the peninsula. After Russia’s annexation, Melitopol became the end of the line. Kravtsov, the Ukrzaliznytsia head, told reporters that “30 to 40” of the state railroad’s locomotives will be take out of service and sold.