In early November 1877, the Bendera-Galati line, with a length of 305 km (190 mi), was opened for military traffic.

In August 1894, the section from Rybnitsa to Balti with a bridge across the Dniester and a 165-meter tunnel on the Lipceni-Mateuti stretch was put into operation.

Since the first days of the Great Patriotic war, the railroad provided access to the front line and the entire combat area.

During the war, over 20% of the network, 30 stations, 50% of the buildings, major bridges on the Dniester and Prut rivers, 90% of the machinery, 30% of the communication lines and more were destroyed and 100 km (62 mi) of tracks were dismantled and removed.

In the 1946–50 period, 3 billion rubles from the Union budget were spent on the restoration and modernization of the Moldavian railway.