Corruption in the distribution of grain cars flourishes — Shchuklin

Last month, Ukrzaliznytsia launched an automatic grain cars distribution system, but corruption and the shadow market continue to flourish.

This opinion was expressed by the owner of the transport-logistic company Alex Rail Yuri Shchuklin.

"First and foremost, the computer program works with algorithms and digits. But when these algorithms, or rather the specifications, are violated by the railwaymen and senders themselves, the program is not capable of functioning," Yuri Shchuklin noted.

According to the expert, some senders (forwarders) use the AS Mesplan program (automatic scheduling system) vulnerabilities, intentionally overestimate plans (electronic applications), put unacknowledged electronic applications bypassing LOG-control at loading stations and ports or use internal codes to increase the total number of wagons required at a particular landfill.

He added that in case of the deficit the program distributes empty backhauls between senders in regular intervals, in proportion to the plans they have announced. Therefore, the elevator, which acts as a sender only at its own station and does not have plans for other stations of a particular landfill, gets much less cars than those forwarders who have the maximum number of applications for other stations.

"Often, these figures are twice the real capacity of loading. Moreover, they often exceed the figures even for those stations where no one is going to load," Yury Shchuklin noted.

The expert said that the system is not able to monitor the implementation of its decisions or influence the situation. Wagons after the distribution get to the station in the way road managers and locomotive drivers want, and they are often affiliated with freight forwarders. And in connection with the delivery of 1-2 cars for some senders and a group of 5-8 cars for others, there is a significant difference in the cost of transportation per ton of grain (UAH 30-40).