Does Minsk really need railway to airport?

14 buses go in the direction of the Minsk-2 airport from the Central bus station every day. The first one departs at 4 a.m., the last one - at 10.35 p.m. There are also buses that go from "Maskouski" bus station, also 14. However, there is one inconvenient moment - the buses do not allow to catch the earliest flights. A plane to Vienna, for example, departs from Minsk airport at 5.30 a.m. It is possible to be on time only if you go by your own car or take a taxi. The most money-saving option is to spend the night in the airport, in uncomfortable chairs. 

                                                                Bus schedule - Central bus station - Minsk-2 airport

So, I went to the airport to check whether it was reasonable to construct a railway there. I have practically no doubt that the railway will appear soon anyway - the word of the state leader made even stranger deeds. While I was thinking about this, a white MAZ bus arrived, about 15 people stuck inside it - more than two thirds of seats remained vacant. We departed at 11.45. Twenty minutes later we arrived to the first stop - "Maskouski" bus station. Although this station will be demolished soon, it is quite popular now. Our bus stood there for 10 minutes, and took about a dozen passengers aboard. The same number of people packed into the bus at "Uruchcha" metro station. 

The new bus passengers did not look like air-travelers - they held small packages with food in their arms, some person even held a spade. The secret was revealed soon - the bus reached the airport nearly empty, most people went out at intermediate stops.

It was even easier to depart from the 'air gates of the country". I hardly managed to reach the bus stop, when several serious-looking men in leather jackets surrounded me - the taxi-drivers. "Come with me! The city center, any hotel - where do you need to go?" - the most persistent taxi-driver told me. Such service is not cheap - the driver wanted Br 400 thousand for the route to the Independence Square. When he saw a smile on my face he proudly walked away. Another one appeared at once, ready to deliver me to the capital "for a lower price".

Dispatcher of one of the taxi services tells me it is indeed possible to pay less. Approximately, Br 300 thousand.

"I won't tell exactly… It's Br 4900 per kilometer in the city and Br 7400 - in the suburbs. It's about Br 250 thousand from Minsk belt road to the airport, plus the route that you go in the city". 

It's not cheap. For this money, I flew from Barcelona to Warsaw not very long go. So, I got back to Minsk by bus. The road from the airport to the nearest metro station took 30 minutes and Br 10 thousand. The bus was half-empty again. It remains a mystery to me who will go to the airport by the trains, promised by the state leader.

Bus schedule: Minsk-2 airport-Minsk city.