Tynda

Tynda (Russian: Ты́нда) is a town in Amur Oblast, Russia, located 568 kilometers (353 mi) northwest of Blagoveshchensk. It is an important railway junction, informally referred to as the capital of the Baikal-Amur Mainline. Population: 36,275 (2010 Census); 40,094 (2002 Census); 61,996 (1989 Census).

Etymology

The name is of Evenk origin and is roughly translated as "on the river bank".

Geography

The town is located at an elevation of 500 meters (1,600 ft) above sea level, near where the Getkan joins the Tynda River, after which the town was named. The Tynda then flows into the Gilyuy, a tributary of the Zeya, a few kilometers east of the town.

History

The settlement of Shkaruby was founded in 1917 on the present site of Tynda, as a rest stop and winter camp on the route from the Amur to the newly discovered gold fields on the Timpton River, a tributary of the Aldan. In 1928, in conjunction with construction of the highway to Yakutsk, it was renamed Tyndinsky (Ты́ндинский).

In 1932, plans for what would eventually become the Baikal-Amur Mainline (BAM) named Tynda as a possible future hub station. A 180-kilometer (110 mi) long rail line, connecting Tynda with BAM station (known as Bamovskaya) near Skovorodino on the Trans-Siberian Railway was constructed between 1933 and 1937, although this was then dismantled during World War II and the rails reused for other projects closer to the front. In 1941, Tynda was granted urban-type settlement status.