From 1929 onwards, the Russian Northern Railway (Severnaya Zheleznaya Doroga) had multiple units manufactured for suburban traffic, which got the designation С (S). This letter stood for the railway administration mentioned. The sets normally consisted of three cars, each of which had a motor car at one end, a trailer in the middle and either a control car or another trailer at the other end.

The oldest vehicles had received electrical equipment from Metropolitan-Vickers until they switched to domestic equipment. Initially, operation only took place under 1,500 volts direct current, but when the first lines were converted to 3,000 volts, vehicles were built that could operate under both voltages. This was achieved by connecting the traction motors in series or parallel. After most of the lines had been converted, the last series were only designed for 3,000 volts.

Until 1958, a total of almost 1,000 three-car sets had been created. The vehicles, which were only built to operate under 1,500 volts, were subsequently converted to 3,000 volts. Some motor cars were used individually as locomotives and pulled cars with a total weight of up to 300 tonnes. In the 1960s, two sets were converted into battery-powered vehicles that could be recharged while running under the overhead line and were used in the Baltics. Most were retired in the 1980s, but some were in use in Yaroslavl until 1997.

The series ЭР1, ЭР2 and ЭР9 (ER1, ER2 and ER9) denote electric multiple units for suburban traffic, of which over 10,000 cars were manufactured and which came to a total of almost 40 years of production. The design was based on a type of three-car multiple units for 3,000 volts direct current, which were built from 1949. In order to increase the capacity to meet the requirements, the concept of two-car train parts was developed. These each consisted of a control car and a motor car or a trailer and a motor car, so that in all possible combinations every second car always had a pantograph and power on all four axles. These had the center buffer couplers common in the Soviet Union, so they could be coupled and uncoupled quickly. The trains were mainly used as ten-car trains, but four-, six- and eight-car combinations were also possible.

From 1957, initially the vehicles of the ЭР1 type were built, the doors of which were only suitable for the high platforms of the well-developed urban suburban railways. The passenger compartment was designed as one large room and had six seats per row with an aisle. The ЭР2 introduced more modern technical equipment with initially the same optics and the entrance areas were now equally suitable for high and low platforms. About 9,200 cars of this model were built in Riga and Tver from 1962 to 1984 and distributed throughout the Soviet Union. Later examples received redesigned driver's cabs with angular cladding. The power selector of the ЭР1 and ЭР2 work as usual with DC railcars with series-parallel circuits and resistors. The ЭР9 was the variant for 25 kV alternating current, which was otherwise similar in structure to the ЭР2 and was controlled by a tap changer.

The production of these vehicles ended in 1995 after more than 4,000 cars of the ЭР9 series. In 2001 and 2003, a ten-car train each followed in Kyiv, which were assembled from existing assemblies. During the construction period, the interior furnishings in particular were modernized. For example, the wooden benches were replaced with upholstered seats and the materials and lighting in the interior were updated. New technologies were tested with individual vehicles, for example in the area of control electronics. Vehicles with batteries were also built, which could also be used on non-electrified sections. Existing vehicles were also modernized over time and some were fitted with completely redesigned car bodies. The oldest vehicles, if they were in the appropriate condition, were taken out of service in the 1980s, and some were converted into two-car service vehicles. By 2010, the majority had already been retired, but some were still in use in Latvia, for example.

After the Second World War, the SŽD needed diesel multiple units for the non-electrified routes for the traction conversion from steam to electric and diesel. Since there was no experience in this area at the time, eight three-car diesel multiple units of the “Hargita” type for long-distance traffic had already been procured from Ganz-MÁVAG in Budapest in 1949. This series ДП (DP) was almost identical to the trains used in the GDR as VT 12¹⁴ and to the M 495.0 in Czechoslovakia.

From 1960, the Д (D) type railcars were procured from the same manufacturer for use in suburban traffic. In terms of the basic technical structure, they were largely the same as these, but each had an engine output increased by 50 hp and the top speed was increased from 105 to 120 km/h. Otherwise, it remained the case that a train consisted of two powered end cars and one trailer. The end cars each had a machine room behind the driver's cab, under which was a three-axle bogie with two driven axles. Power was transmitted through a five-speed mechanical gearbox. Inside, the new trains differed from the old ones primarily by the omission of the dining car compartment and a larger passenger capacity.

A total of 89 trains were purchased by 1964, which were concentrated on the Baltic States and today's Ukraine. In operation, the mechanical transmissions in particular often caused problems, which were also considered loud and had to be shifted manually by the driver with use of the clutch. That is why the Д1 (D1) type multiple units, which had hydromechanical power transmission, were introduced in their original areas of application as early as 1964. The trains of the Д series were distributed to other locations. However, retirement of the oldest vehicles did not begin until around 1980 and by 1987 all had disappeared from active service. From the time after that there are photos of converted service vehicles, which only consist of an end car with a second driver's cab.

Due to inadequacies of the manually operated, mechanical transmission of the D-series DMUs and the required higher passenger capacity, new four-part multiple units were ordered from 1964. These were initially also given the series designation Д (D) and only after 98 units were manufactured were they re-designated Д1 (D1) to distinguish them.

Externally, the most noticeable difference was the second trailer on the new multiple units. If required, operation with three or four trailers or in multiple working was also possible. Each end car was powered by a diesel engine, which was a direct development of the engines from the older vehicles and, thanks to the added turbocharger and intercooler, produced 730 hp. The hydromechanical power transmission had three gears. While first gear transmitted power through a torque converter, the other two gears were mechanical. Since these gearboxes were now shifted automatically, this meant that the work of the driver was made easier. A total of 605 units were built up to 1988. New powered bogies were introduced during production, with the outer axle now being the carring axle rather than the middle one.

They were used on non-electrified suburban lines throughout the European part of Russia. In the earlier trainsets, technical problems in the drive train became apparent over time, so that the vehicles used in Russia got new hydraulic transmissions between 1995 and 2002 from the DMUs of the ДР1А (DR1A) series and new engines. Many vehicles remained in other countries after the collapse of the Soviet Union. In the Baltic States, they were already phased out shortly after the turn of the millennium. In Moldova, a comprehensive modernization of the interior and powertrain took place from 2012, during which the vehicles were given a modern, streamlined head shape.

After the outdated suburban EMUs of the ЭТ1 and ЭТ2 series for the DC network, the ЭТ2 (ET2) series was built in the Torshok wagon factory from 1993. They have a similar structure and can be used in combinations of two, four, six, eight, ten and twelve cars. The propulsion is still carried out with direct current motors. After 30 sets of the basic version, a total of 116 sets of the modernized ЭТ2M were built from 1999. These had improvements in many areas, which differed depending on the year of construction. The innovations included new plastic seats, LED lighting inside and outside and more modern driver's cabs. These vehicles can also carry additional trailers, even though mostly ten-car sets are still used.

A special model was the six-car ЭТ2Л from 1999, where the Cyrillic “L” stood for “luxury”. This train had a more comfortable interior, some of which was also used on the ЭТ2M. Another one-off was the Э2A, which was intended to test the use of three-phase motors in the DC network. These offer better performance characteristics regardless of speed and significantly lower power consumption. The train also received more modern technology in other areas, such as computer-controlled traction control. Multiple working was not only possible with vehicles of the ЭТ2 series, but also with the old ЭТ2.

Starting in 2011, Siemens built the first 54 trains of the Russian variant of the Desiro MainLine in Germany. They got the designation ЭС1 (ES1) and were nicknamed “Lastochka” (“Swallow”). To ensure the operation on most electrified Russian lines, they are equipped for both 25.000 V AC and 3.000 V DC. With -40 to +40°C, the temperature range in which the trains can operate is also wider than in the other Desiro variants. The sets are composed of five to ten cars and deliver a power of 2,550 kW in the shortest variant, at a maximum speed of 1.600 km/h.

Their introduction into service was in January 2013 in the St. Petersburg commuter network and they were also used during the 2014 Winter Olympics at Sochi. A second variant that was being built by Sinara in Russia is the ЭС2Г (ES2G) that is only equipped for operation under DC. Now these trains are operated in the northwest and south of Russia, around Moscow and in the Urals. After the start of the Ukraine War in 2022, Siemens ceased all operations in Russia and production was cancelled. Since 2024, Sinara is producing the ЭС104 (ES104) on the technical basis of the Desiro and with a changed exterior design, but without a license.