Ukrzaliznytsia is a brand whose communications reach millions of people every day. Passengers expect quick responses, clear information, and quality service from the company. In wartime, these expectations are accompanied by complex and unpredictable situations.
How do you communicate with such a large audience? How do you explain problems when some information cannot be disclosed? How do you talk about changes and services in a way that allows people to see the concrete value for them behind the company’s scale and figures?
These were some of the topics discussed at u.comms club with Oleksandr Shevchenko, Deputy Director and Head of Passenger Communications and Customer Service at Ukrzaliznytsia’s Passenger Company.
Communication starts with people
Every day, Ukrzaliznytsia operates around 100 passenger services and receives around 6,000 inquiries. Behind these figures is a huge range of different requests, situations, and expectations.
That is why one of the foundations of the company’s communications is looking at every situation from the passenger’s perspective.
“Passengers are not interested in how many carriages have burned or what difficulties the company is facing with infrastructure or staff. They care about something else: whether the train will run, when they will get home, whether the carriage will be warm, and whether they will receive attention in a difficult situation,” Oleksandr explains.
This principle applies beyond crisis situations. Any communication from a large organization should be tested with a simple question: what does this information mean for the person receiving it?
When you cannot speak openly
The war has significantly changed the conditions in which Ukrzaliznytsia operates. Before the full-scale invasion, the company had around 3,000 passenger carriages. Today, there are around 1,500. During peak periods, this allows the company to meet only 36% of demand.
At the same time, not all data can be communicated publicly. For example, when it comes to transporting military personnel or children, the team can talk about the work itself without disclosing specific figures.
In such situations, Ukrzaliznytsia shifts the focus to the process. Instead of providing detailed information that cannot be disclosed, the team shows how carriages are being built and refurbished, how services are changing, and what the company is doing to increase its transportation capacity.
This is a practical approach that can be applied across different industries: when the result cannot be fully disclosed, communicate the actions that are leading to it.
Service as part of communication
For a major service brand, communication does not end with publishing news. The experience people have when interacting with a company shapes its reputation.
That is why Ukrzaliznytsia is working on new services, including Starlink-based Wi-Fi in 300 long-distance carriages, online payment for services during the journey, the option to tip conductors, a new menu, and the renewal of its passenger carriage fleet.
Communicating these changes makes it possible to show not only what the company is doing now, but also how it plans to improve the passenger experience.
Reputation is built through experience
“There is no loyalty to a brand, only loyalty to emotions and experience. Reputational memory is short,” says Oleksandr Shevchenko.
For Ukrzaliznytsia, this is particularly important. People may forget a specific message, but they are likely to remember how the company behaved during a delay, an attack, a cyberattack, or another difficult situation.
That is why communication is about more than the messages themselves. It is also about what stands behind them: a concrete action, support, service, or solution to a problem.
A major brand, a major impact
Today, Ukrzaliznytsia’s audience extends far beyond ordinary passengers. The company has become part of international diplomacy: since 2022, it has operated more than 1,100 diplomatic journeys, including transportation for world leaders and international delegations.
At the same time, the core principle remains the same: communicate clearly, show concrete actions, and remember who the communication is for.
