The popularity of secondary vocational education is growing rapidly. Today it is an open system that develops in alliance with employers, students and educators. The openness of the system, constant updating of the content, prompt flexible response to socio-economic changes and problems, harmonization of learning outcomes with the requirements in the world of work determine the possibilities of adapting secondary vocational education to external changes.

The issues of training mid-level personnel for the transport industry are in the center of attention of the Ministry of Education and Science, the Ministry of Transport and universities under the jurisdiction of Roszheldor. Thus, representatives of the Public Council under Roszheldor spoke about the need for full funding of secondary vocational education, which will allow the implementation of training programs for secondary vocational education for the railway industry of better quality and ensure a greater flow of young specialists.

The editors invited leading scientists and leaders of the first level of the universities of communications to speak on the pages of the journal about the main trends in the development of vocational education in railway transport, share the experience gained, highlight particularly topical issues.

Professional and public accreditation is increasingly included in the practice of interaction between employers and the education system. Topical issues of carrying out the procedure of professional and public accreditation of basic educational programs implemented for the training of qualified personnel in the field of railway transport are considered. The goals and objectives of professional and public accreditation are outlined, practical aspects that help an educational organization to effectively go through the appropriate procedure are highlighted.

The presented experience is the result of the author's practical work on the organization of professional and public accreditation of basic educational programs on behalf of employers of railway transport.

The role of the non-profit organization “Association of colleges and technical schools of transport” in solving problems related to the modernization of transport education is considered. Today the Association is an effective tool for feedback with educational organizations in promoting innovative projects in the field of education.

Association pays special attention to coordinating the development of new industry competencies WorldSkills.

The need for the creation of new competencies is revealed, as a rule, in preparation for a new championship cycle, the introduction of demonstration exam technologies or the development of the championship movement in production, in a region or a university.

The idea of joining efforts with colleges and technical schools of sea and river transport of industrial university complexes within the framework of the Association, which is actively supported by the Ministry of Transport of Russia, is becoming significant. This is a further perspective, the next step in the development of the Association.

To do together what we cannot do alone is the leitmotif of the activities of the Association, which opens up the opportunity for all members of the Association to reach new educational frontiers.

The appearance of the new federal educational standards for secondary vocational education has given rise to two tools: the WorldSkills competitive movement and the independent assessment of qualifications. Today, the state final certification should be conducted in the form of a defense of the final qualification work, in the form of a thesis (diploma project) and a demonstration exam, which requires specialized sites (equipped with modern technological equipment) that allow you to perform tasks that are provided for in the passport of competencies according to the WorldSkills model. This entails financial costs for educational organizations: either for the participation and use of a specialized site on the basis of a third-party organization, or for the creation of new competencies and the development of the material and technical base of their educational institution.

The article describes the experience of the teachers of the Tikhoretsk Technical School of Railway Transport in developing competencies according to WorldSkills standards, as well as the problems and ways of developing championship lines in railway specialties. The creation of new competencies, the development of an expert community, the interaction of educational organizations and the holding of competitions according to WorldSkills standards brings changes to the system of secondary vocational education and sets the pace in the development of championship lines.

The problem of vocational training of specialists is one of the most essential questions in vocational education.

Industrial enterprises (and not only railway transport), are currently forced to spend much money and time on additional training of their new employees (specialists), who experience serious difficulties when working. The theoretical training of a young specialist even he (or she) is hardworking, discipline and pass in for his work sometimes doesn't correspond to the real facts at works. The change in the system of the vocational education is necessity now days. These changes are connected with the necessity to improve the training of the students.

In the conditions when reform of the system of the vocational education is full speed and the teachers are in search of new educational models the problem of the trained skilled workers claimed in the labor market is in great need. It must be an energetic, curious, creative person capable to show his skill and to react quickly on the changes in the society especially in the professional and social sphere. The main task of the contemporary educational institution is training of such graduating students.

Modernization as being an important reserve for the reorganization and renovation of the education system in accordance with the contemporary demands puts the task: to bring in accordance with the social and economical needs of the country to establish communication with the works.

The improvement of the vocational education will be of great importance not only for the development of the railway transport but for the whole country, it will give a push to the positive changes in the others branches of industry.

The experience of the Federal Agency for Railway Transport (Roszheldor) conducting annual training courses for the heads of educational institutions of secondary vocational education and heads of state universities of railways supervising their work, organized by the Training and Methodological Center for Education in Railway Transport, considered. The main issues and problems that were discussed from September 13 to 16, 2021 at the courses “Improving the quality of secondary vocational education in the field of railway transport: prospects and ways of development”, held on the basis of the Emperor Alexander I St. Petersburg State Transport University.

The topical issues, the study of which is devoted to the event: the results of the work of educational institutions of secondary vocational education of Roszheldor; interaction of educational organizations of Roszheldor with the main employer — JSC Russian Railways; educational and methodological support of basic professional educational programs of secondary vocational education; new organizational and methodological mechanisms in the system of secondary vocational education through Federal educational and methodological association; introduction of technological innovations into secondary vocational education in railway transport through professional skill con-tests; WorldSkills championships; informational, organizational, scientific and methodological resources for solving problems of training mid-level specialists for railway transport.

Passenger transport of the country has a significant impact on the level of its economic development, providing the connection of the population with objects of industrial, social, cultural and household purposes.

In Russia, intercity passenger transportation by public transport is mainly represented by bus, rail, aviation (aircraft) and water (domestic). The article analyzes the dynamics of passenger transportation and passenger turnover of public transport for the period from 2015 to 2020, presents a calculation of the number of flights performed by bus, rail, air (aircraft) and water (domestic) transport, identifies the reasons for the lack of development of passenger transportation and suggests solutions.

It is established that inland water transport is currently undergoing decline and state intervention is necessary for their development. Also, during the period under review, there is a decrease in the popularity of buses and a preference for private transport to public, it is necessary to improve the quality of transportation. The indicators of air and rail transport have positive dynamics, but they also require growth. The development of air transport in Russia can be carried out by the introduction of new services, for example, air taxi, rail-transport in the field of urban and suburban communications, the construction of new high - speed highways. In 2020, due to the announcement of restrictions on movement and quarantine measures, there is a sharp decline in indicators for all types of transport.

The materials can be used to analyze and improve the work of the country's passenger complex.

Automation of freight train management will help reduce the number of employees involved in traffic management, reduce the costs of railway companies associated with paying wages to employees, increase profits and increase competitive advantages over other modes of transport.

Within the framework of technical progress for the development of railway technology, the automation of rolling stock control systems in the current period is one of the essential tasks. In the transport sector of the national economy, the development of unmanned movement technology is observed due to the introduction of an automatic control system, which should ensure the safety, conduct and control of the train, monitor the free path, identify and handle emergency situations. It is of great importance to create modern digital platforms that improve the safety and efficiency of transportation.

The article discusses the maximum levels of automation of control of main-line freight trains and shunting locomotives, which some countries of the world have managed to achieve.

The issues of interaction of railway station personnel when troubleshooting infrastructure malfunctions are considered on the example of track devices and signaling, centralization and blocking equipment. Examples of specific solutions to problem situations are given when training a duty officer at a railway station using a simulator representing virtual workplaces of a duty officer and/or train dispatcher. The experience and options for using the simulator in the motion control laboratory are described. The relevance of the publication is associated with the digital transformation of management and the need to train staff at railway stations to interact in a virtual simulation of the transportation process. Changes in the display on the monitor of the simulator in the sequence of actions of the attendant at the railway station are shown. Examples of discrepancy between real methods of troubleshooting at the station and the software of the training complex are given. The perspective of development of virtual control technologies using artificial intelligence is explained. The current instructions and normative documents are used as information materials. A variant of paperwork is proposed as a result of the interaction of employees of various subordination in accordance with the requirements of the current regulatory and technological documents.

As scientific methods, the content analysis of the protocols of the students' work on the simulators was used, analytical comparisons of the quantitative and qualitative indicators of the work on the organization of the transportation process during the digital transformation of management were carried out. The didactic forms of using digital simulators in educational work and other forms of educational activity are listed. The results obtained are in improving the quality of training students in professional competencies, ensuring the demand for graduates of educational institutions of the middle level of railway transport in the promising labor market.

A full-fledged transformation is impossible without the use of new didactic approaches and without the creation of a qualitatively new educational and methodological support. This is due to the peculiarities of the modern student. Modern students were born and grew up in an information-saturated world and they are dominated by clip thinking, which is focused on processing information in short portions. Based on this, the problem of developing such training programs that would be aimed at independent work, based on game methods of presenting information, would take into account the psychophysiological features of perception, processing and storage of information by a modern person becomes urgent.

To solve this problem, the authors analyzed the results of cognitive psychology research, conducted a self-analysis of the experience of developing and implementing three-dimensional interactive training programs in the educational process.

The paper reveals the problems and disadvantages of traditional ways of presenting information. Examples of the implementation of interactive training applications are shown. The method of organizing a distributed distance learning system is presented.

The conducted research allowed us to outline ways to modernize educational and methodological support by using interactive applications, mobile learning, resource allocation, introduction of modern digital solutions and creation of a comfortable educational environment.

The development of humanity is impossible without means of signaling. Signaling in any sphere of human activity has always been a means of ensuring the safety of his life. One of these areas was railway transport, the development of which and, accordingly, signalling facilities began in the early 19th century.

With the progress of technological progress in Russia, signaling tools have also evolved, which have gone from the simplest sound and optical signals to modern ones using satellite technologies. Naturally, this path in the technical evolution of mankind is of interest to scientists and just curious people, since knowledge of the stages of the origin and development of signaling allows contemporaries to improve it and at the same time not forget the basics of this area.

As a result of this process, the signaling system on railway transport, its means have undergone serious changes. Primitive ways of giving commands - optical (disk, flag) and sound (whistle) to the participants of the movement were pushed by more modern means of signaling, which already involve microprocessor technology and satellite technologies.

An example of modern signaling means is the automatic locomotive signaling of a single row of continuous type (ALS-EN). The signal of this type of signaling is more informative: it contains information about the number of free block sections ahead of the train, as well as about the permissible speed of its movement.

To ensure uninterrupted railway communication with the Republic of Crimea, within the framework of the largest national infrastructure project, the construction of a transport crossing through the Kerch Strait was completed in 2018, which also includes a railway component. The article considers the regulatory legal grounds for the use of modern stationary inspection and screening complexes that allow for the inspection of freight trains plying on the railway of the transport passage through the Kerch Strait.

The uniqueness of the legal regime for the protection of this structure is complemented by the use of the latest technical means of ensuring transport security to prevent the commission of unlawful encroachments in the activities of the transport complex, including stationary inspection railway complexes.

The principle of operation of inspection complexes, which is based on the physical method of introscopy, is shown, and their technical characteristics are given. The use of inspection railway complexes allows the transport security forces to identify objects and substances that are prohibited or restricted for movement into the transport security zone, practically without interfering with the technological processes of freight traffic, since the scanning of wagons is carried out while the passage is moving. Modern installations at a high level reliably protect the Crimean bridge from illegal encroachments.

Economic development cannot be imagined without oil and petroleum products. The rhythmic and efficient operation of industrial enterprises and other sectors of the national economy depends on uninterrupted supplies, therefore, logistics transport schemes for the delivery of petroleum products are very important. Such types of transportation are well studied in the modern period, but until now no one has considered them in wartime. An attempt is made to analyze the variety of delivery schemes and their diversification during the war with the aim of applying the experience in peacetime.

The experience of organizing the transportation of oil cargo during military events is considered, the historical aspects of the use of unique schemes for the delivery of oil cargo are disclosed. The study of schemes for the transportation of oil cargo in transport and logistics systems in the historical context gives an idea of the uniqueness of individual delivery methods. Thanks to the feat of the oilmen and sailors, the supply of the front through the Caspian Sea Baku — Krasnovodsk and Baku — Astrakhan was established. From the very first days of the Great Patriotic War, oil Baku has been supplying the front with oil and oil products without interruption.

The study of historical facts shows that the schemes for the transportation of oil cargo have always been aimed at the maximum interaction of modes of transport and the use of their technical advantages. The possibility of using modern transport and technological systems for oil transportation, which have been developed by expanding the development of logistics tools and principles of logistics, is given.

The construction of railways in Russia, as well as throughout the world, contributed to the emergence of numerous new areas of social life, including stimulating the emergence of previously unknown new sectors of the economy. On the basis of a historical review, the mission of the railways in improving the Russian society is considered, the spheres of influence on public life, aesthetic education and enrichment of the appearance of the landscape, the development of the sphere of enlightenment and education, missionary work, and service are listed. Examples of solving the problem of long-distance year-round communication, regardless of the climate, main communication across the vastness of Russia, the creation of a special tradition of transportation, which determined the still living everyday style of life of Russian railways, are given.

Having spawned a new tradition of messages, people have created a different system of relationships with the world. The railway has played a leading role in this and has a long and honorable history, it is a great chronicle of heroism, labor, scientific thought and culture.

The study is devoted to the initial stage of development of railways and aspects of their impact on the life of Russians. The following will describe the historical events that predetermined the current state of domestic railways in the context of the everyday life of compatriots.

The main tasks of the Olympiad of diploma projects of the Federal Agency for Railway Transport are to improve the quality of training, develop the creative abilities of students, increase the interest of students and teachers in the development and improvement of the railway industry, and form highly qualified human resources. The practice of participation of branches (structural units) of secondary vocational education of the Irkutsk State Transport University shows that not all indicators can be achieved.

The educational process in secondary vocational education is focused on preparing for practical activities in production. In accordance with federal state educational standards for secondary vocational education programs, a student must master general and professional competencies, acquire certain knowledge, skills and practical experience. It is proposed to make a number of changes in the system of evaluating the Olympiad of diploma projects in terms of criteria. The assessment system of the Olympiad must be adapted taking into account the possibilities of secondary vocational education to stimulate the participation of structural units in their conduct.

Today, an urgent problem for applicants and employers is to obtain complete and reliable information about the quality of training of students by educational organizations of various levels, including secondary vocational education. One of the most demanded tools is an independent assessment of the quality of education and the creation of ratings of educational organizations. Of interest are the ratings generated by employers, which do not assess formal signs of compliance of the conditions for the implementation of the educational process with regulatory requirements, but include indicators that allow assessing the level of graduates ‘compliance with employers' requirements and the demand for graduates in the transport industry.

The All-Russian Industry Association of Railway Transport Employers (Zheldortrans) this year for the first time held a rating of educational organizations that implement programs of secondary vocational education in railway specialties. This rating included the main indicators that allow assessing the quality of personnel training for railway transport enterprises. Information about the goals and criteria of rating formation, as well as its results is provided. According to the results of the work of the expert commission, formed from representatives of Zheldor-trans and the Russian Railways holding, the Chelyabinsk Institute of Railways, a branch of the Ural State University of Railways, was recognized as the best educational organization that implements training programs for specialists in secondary vocational education in the areas of rail transport.

One of the most important problems of modern education is the use of information and communication technologies in educational activities and the educational process for all types and at all levels of education. Special requirements are currently imposed on the electronic information and educational environment of an educational institution. The Krasnoyarsk Institute of Railway Transport has created an electronic educational resource for secondary vocational education programs, operating on the basis of LMS Moodle. This electronic educational resource is based on general didactic principles: scientific nature, accessibility, visibility, systematicity and consistency of training, strength of knowledge assimilation, intellectual potential. It was accepted that each electronic course within the resource should have the following qualities: a developed hypertext structure in the conceptual part, as well as in a logical structure of presentation, a user-friendly navigation system, the ability to use multimedia technologies, accessibility, links to literary sources, electronic libraries and sources of information on the Internet, effective feedback.

The organizational measures for building the structure of an electronic educational resource and the stages of its implementation in the educational process for secondary vocational education programs are considered: sequential training of the teaching staff in the development of courses in the Moodle system, the development and adoption of the structure of an electronic educational resource, the development of requirements for electronic courses placed in the resource.

The information about the organization and holding of the VI International competition of publications for educational organizations and institutions of higher education engaged in training in enlarged groups of specialties and areas of training “Transport” “University Book - 2021” within the framework of the All-Russian competition “University Book” by the Educational and Methodological Center for Education in Railway Transport with the support of the Federal Agency for Railway Transport and the editorial board of the journal “University BOOK” is presented. The article names the participants: 27 publishing collectives of universities and structural divisions, 16 author collectives, 2 domestic publishing houses, 2 organizations.

The Expert Council of the competition conducted serious work on the study of competitive materials according to the following criteria: evaluation of the publication apparatus, editorial and publishing preparation, structure, language and style, compliance with the analyzed genres, illustrative material, didactic apparatus, design, technical and printing performance, novelty and relevance. In total, 182 competitive publications were considered for all types of transport (railway, automobile, aviation, water). The title of the Winner of the competition was awarded to Rostov State University of Railways by the total number of well-deserved awards.