European Railroad Discussion > Return to Slovenia

Just got back from a return trip to Slovenia. Something of a contrast to this time last year when the sun shone for most of my visit. This past week has seen some sun, but plenty of cloud too and some torrential rain, especially this morning, as you will see.

Slovenian Railways (Slovenske Železnice) are extraordinarily accessible, there are few, if any barriers keeping you away from the action, and as long as you don't trespass on running lines the staff are very relaxed about railfans. Yesterday I was waitjng for a freight in the town of Celje whilst next to me SŽ staff were refueling one of their EMD diesels. No one seemed to mind. Freight train drivers invariably wave, flash their headlights and play tunes on the locos two tone horns when they see a railfan. It's about as nice a place as you can go.

This is what I saw in just over three and a half hours earlier today


Rakek
09:15 ÖBB (Austria) class 1293 EB box wagons
09:20 SŽ (Slovenia) class 363 032 WB Innofreight iron ore containers & loaded cars
09:27 SŽ 363 036 on RCA habbiins vans pans down in the EB passing siding.
09:32 LTE 193 (Vectron) EB empty car carriers.
Ivanje selo
09:52 SŽ 363 026 WB intermodal
10:08 SŽ 541 017 EB ore / coal hoppers (Slovenian)
10:18 SŽ 541 018 & another WB Railcargo Austria vans
10:36 Railpool 6193 (Vectron) 094 EB Eurologsystems hoppers (a Serbian logistics company)
10:36 WB hoppers (didn't see the head end power) SŽ 363 018 was the helper
10:49 SŽ 363 014 WB ballast hoppers
11:04 ÖBB 1293 060 & 1293 076 WB grain hoppers
11:32 SŽ 541 106 EB tanks
11:52 InRail 193 594 & 193 *68 (Vectrons) WB tanks
12:03 SŽ 541 019 EB empty autoracks
12:22 Rail & Sea 1293 902 (Vectron) & Hercules diesel box wagons
12:39 SŽ 363 012 WB Hyundai SUVs
12:52 SŽ 541 011 WB hoppers SŽ 363 012 helper
12:55 SŽ 541 007 EB with SŽ 363 036 & vans seen parked in the passing loop earlier.

The 363s are the 50 year old Alstom built 'nez cassé' locomotives which are very characterful and noisy.

Here's a video I took this morning.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 03/14/25 13:12 by 86235.

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Very nice, and I agree that Slovenia is a very pleasant (and pretty) place.  The National Railway Museum in Ljubljana is worth a visit.
Gordon

Nick - you must have been pretty soaked! Interesting that a couple of the westbounds you saw there in Ivanje Selo had helpers on them. When I was at that spot last June I saw tons of trains but didn’t see any helpers. I thought helpers were only used between Koper and Divaca. Got any theories?

Posted from iPhone

dwatry Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> When I was at that spot last June I saw tons of
> trains but didn’t see any helpers. I thought
> helpers were only used between Koper and Divaca.
> Got any theories?
>
> Posted from iPhone

I was well and truly soaked, drove back to the airport with the car hearing full on and the windows open. Dried off by the time I reached Gatwick!

The two 363 helpers looked to be on loaded grain workings and they were both working so I'm guessing there's more than one helper district.

Are those manned helpers, or remotely controlled locomotives by the engineer on the lead unit?

Ted Curphey
Ontario, OR

funnelfan Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Are those manned helpers, or remotely controlled
> locomotives by the engineer on the lead unit?

Manned

A half day at the three way junction of Zidani Most in central Slovenia is a must for visitors.

A very interesting video. It's easy to see why Slovenia is attractive for railfanning. And I did not know that they operated 'nez cassé' motors there - quite interesting. Thanks for sharing this with us.

MC

Very nice, thx for posting.    My grandparents immigrated from there in 1903.  I visited there in 2004 and look forward to going back.