European Railroad Discussion > Slovakia March 2015

From the two videos I posted some of you will know that I went to Slovakia on a train chasing holiday. It took what has become the usual form, a low cost airline flight, picking up a rental car and then heading off in search of trains.

For those of you that don't know Slovakia the capital, Bratislava, is in the SW corner near the Czech and Austrian border; the second city - Kosice - is in the east, some 50 miles from the border with Ukraine and about 20 miles from Hungary. The mainline which connects the two cities heads NE towards the third city, Zilina (140 miles), before turning east to Poprad (190 miles) and then heading SE to Kosice (270 miles). It's electrified - 25kV AC as far as Zilina, 3kV DC from there to Kosice. There are other mainlines which connect with Hungary, the Czech Republic and Poland and standard and broad gauge lines which connect Kosice with Ukraine, the latter feeding iron ore to the US Steel integrated steelworks.

Internally there are secondary mainlines, often single track, which connect the major towns and cities. On the Bratislava to Kosice line the long distance train service is approximately hourly in each direction, with an overnight train carrying a sleeping car. Locals, stopping at all stations, fill in the gaps. Freight is heavy, on the electrified lines often with the big Skoda built class 131 double locomotives, elsewhere diesels - both car-body and switcher types - are extensively used. The incumbent operator - ZSSK - competes against two Czech based 'for profit' operators - Regio Jet and Leo Express - and in freight ZSSK-Cargo is also in competition with private operators. All in all it's an interesting scene.

On my first day I flew to Bratislava, picking up the car I headed NE towards the east-west mainline between Zilina and Poprad, stopping en-route on the secondary mainline from Bratislava to Zvolen and Banska Bistrica for some pictures in the valley of the River Hron. On the mainline, which I reached at about lunchtime I started at Besenova, where the line was relocated post war to avoid a reservoir, heading east towards Poprad, stopping at Strba where the snow was still quite deep. On the drive over the mountain from Banska Bistrica I passed a ski resort which was busy with Sunday day trippers out for a days skiing.

My hotel in Poprad, the Europa, was next to the station. After dinner I wandered over to watch the activity between 21:00 and 22:00. First through was the Leo Express Stadler Flirt EMU - in inter-city configuration - which operates an afternoon Prague to Kosice service with an overnight return. It was well loaded as it pulled into Poprad. It was followed some 20 minutes later by the evening Regio Jet from Bratislava to Kosice, with a new Siemens Vectron up front. Again it seemed well loaded. And finally the first of the two overnight sleepers - The Slovakia - connecting Kosice with Prague and Brno (1 sleeper) consisting of chair cars, sleepers and a couchette car, another busy train with, presumably, weekenders heading home to Prague after a weekend skiing, judging by the luggage. At Poprad a set out sleeper is added to the consist together with a double deck car carrier.

A couple of pictures from Day 1 - at Besenova my first encounter with one of ZSSK-Cargo's characterful class 131 and secondly at Strba, the highest point of the line where there was still plenty of lying snow, 362 012-7 (another Skoda product) on one of the ZSSK semi fast services. Since the Slovak government changed free travel entitlements last year these trains have grown from 8 or 9 to 13 cars!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/19/15 06:35 by 86235.

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Day 2 was spent along a relatively short stretch of the mainline between Poprad and Kosice between the tunnel east of Margecany and the town of Krompachy. I had driven this way last July and was determined to re-visit and explore in more depth. In this remote hill country you see a side to rural Slovakia not apparent in the towns, or in the more prosperous agribusiness areas on the Danube plain; Roma people living in third world conditions - with no running water and no sanitation. Shooting pictures of trains in this country is really relaxing, no hassle apart from a policeman who told me I couldn't park where I'd pulled up, but in compensation he directed me to a field entrance down the road!

In the valley of the Hornad a few kms west of Margecany it's the late morning Regio-jet from Kosice to Bratislava, with one of Regio-jet's new leased Siemens Vectron locomotives upfront.

And crossing the Hornad at Krompachy a Kosice to Zilina local, having been put in the hole at Krompachy to let the Kosice to Prague Pendolino pass. CD (Cesky Drahy) and ZSSK operate the Pendolino in competition with Regio Jet and Leo Express although it doesn't use its tilt facility in Slovakia

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Day 3 (Tuesday). After arriving in Kosice in the evening and rather disappointed to find that most of the electric public transport - trams and trolley buses - has been suspended whilst there is a major overhaul of tracks and overhead equipment. I only saw one tram actually working and no trolleybuses. The city centre itself is a bit of a building site as the work goes on, hopefully it won't be long before services are resumed and equally hopefully the Tatra trams will still feature.

Train-wise I headed north towards Trebejov to the north of the city for the morning eastbound sleepers, the Slovakia and the Bohemia, arriving at 07:41 and 08:11 respectively. After the Bohemia, which was running about half an hour late, I drove round Kosice and headed east, firstly to Ruskov and then later in the day to Bohdanovce, Slančík (where I saw the T669s) and Kalša. At Kalša, after a second 5' gauge empty train passed me heading east I was determined to follow. After a solitary shot at Slivnik I got hopelessly lost east of Trebišov as the 5' gauge line leaves the standard gauge and is almost impossible to follow. After an hour of wandering aimlessly through the small villages of the Slovakian borderland I arrived, purely by chance, at Maťovské Vojkovce which is where ZSSK interchanges with UZ (Ukraine State Railways). There's a standard gauge and a 5' gauge yard and, rather remarkably, a road runs straight through the facility. There are police and cameras around - this is the edge of the EU after all - but no one seemingly minded me driving back and forth. And just as the sun set I managed a poor picture of a UZ electric heading east over the border - which is about 1 km to the east - with 52 empties.

Picture one is the 11 car Bohemia as it speeds down the Hornad valley- with through sleepers and couchettes to Humenne and 2 car carriers and picture two the UZ locomotive passing a shrine - Slovakia is very catholic - as it prepares to leave Slovakia and enter Ukraine.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 03/21/15 16:34 by 86235.

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Last day. I had to be back in Bratislava for my flight home at 21:55 so had plenty of time.

Another early start for the first of the two sleepers - the Slovakia - before I started the drive to Žilina in the NW of the country, some 140 miles. Slovakia's road network is being upgraded but the motorway (freeway) between Kosice and Bratislava is not contiguous, there are a number of sections of motorway interspersed with two lane stretches, the worst of the latter being a 45 mile stretch through the mountains between Besenova and Žilina, through Ruzumberok, Martin and Vrutky, which is choked with traffic. In addition you have to thread your way through Prešov, some 20 miles north of Kosice, in yet another break in the motorway. There is a sort of ring road but it's not restricted access or divided and supports trolley buses, but at least you avoid the city centre. It reminds me of Britain in the 1970s.

So the drive was tedious but I stopped off at Svit mid morning, Besenova and west of Ruzumberok around lunchtime, spending the afternoon exploring, unsuccessfully, north of Žilina the line towards the Czech Republic and Poland. I think there maybe morning shots to be had but nothing much in the afternoon. I headed back to Zilina and then east to where the mainline from Kosice emerges from a tunnel, crosses the River Vah under the gaze of Hrad (Castle) Strečno, and taking my last picture in the village of Varin, some 5 miles east of Zilina.

At Svit the morning westbound Kosice to Prague Regio jet with the Tatra Mountains as a back drop and finally, the last picture before I reluctantly had to call it a day and head home, a CKD 757 (which I think has a Caterpillar prime mover these days) on a Zvolen to Zilina train.

Great four days, really really good!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/21/15 16:36 by 86235.

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Really wonderful pictures from a part of the world I'll mosdt likely never see. They make me appreciate what we have been blessed with materially in America. Thank you for posting these excellent shots.

Thanks, it was a whole lot of fun, of course the weather contributed, especialy on Monday morning, and all day Tuesday and Wednesday when the sun shone without a break.

Looks like some great train chasing!

Always love a Goggle Cab working a passenger train!

ATSF5669 Wrote:
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> Really wonderful pictures from a part of the world
> I'll mosdt likely never see. They make me
> appreciate what we have been blessed with
> materially in America. Thank you for posting
> these excellent shots.


While I agree that these are great pictures, and indeed that Slovakia is an attractive country in many respects, what is it that you have been blessed with in the US that these pictures lead you to appreciate?

GettingShort Wrote:
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> Looks like some great train chasing!

Absolutely, some of the best.

Here's a link to the first two days

http://nick86235.smugmug.com/Trains/2015/Slovakia-2015/

What a wonderful set of pictures Nick, accompanied with and interesting story! Thank you for sharing these! 

Thanks John - something weird has happened to my original post - the place names have been un-spelt and letters replaced by punctuation marks.