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hide options panelDiesel Motor Coaches
84 photos
updated : 2020-11-27
Instead of DMUs, CSD traditionally built diesel motor coaches to work fast and semi-fast services on unelectrified main and secondary lines. They were designed to haul a number of trailers but had to run round their trains like a loco at termini as there were no driving trailers until fairly recently.
Preserved
8 photos
updated : 2020-11-27
There is an active preservation scene in the Czech Republic with preserved locos and railcars regularly running on the national system. As well as enthusiast groups, depots or railway staff groups also adopt locos and keep them in working order. Others are owned by the National Technical Museum.
Diesels
515 photos
updated : 2020-11-27
In the early years of the 21st Century there was still a lot of work for diesels in the Czech Republic. There weren't many different types but the variety of liveries was unmatched anywhere in Europe. Diesel working is less common these days but the photos here were taken while it was still good.
Freights
190 photos
updated : 2020-11-27
Freight traffic dropped dramatically after the fall of the iron curtain and the deregulation of road transport in the early 1990s. There are still significant levels of freight on several corridors but, away from the electrified main lines, it can be sparse and diesel worked freights are relatively hard to find.
AC Electrics
10 photos
updated : 2020-11-27
Several of the country's most important routes had been electrified at 3000V DC before 25kV AC was adopted for new schemes in the late 1960s. Relatively few major routes are AC all the way and dual-system locos have been preferred. Several classes of AC only loco were built and are still in service.
EMUs
22 photos
updated : 2020-11-27
Until the early years of the 21st Century the only EMUs in the Czech Republic were used on suburban duties around some of the main centres such as Praha and Brno. The first Pendolinos arrived in 2005 and several other classes for regional services have followed since (although they're not featured here).
DC Electrics
90 photos
updated : 2020-11-26
CSD electrified several major routes at 3000V DC from the 1950s onwards, before switching to 25kV AC as the preferred system in the late 1960s. Most DC electrics date from the 1970s or later but a few early examples still see some use. Polish and Slovak DC electrics can also be seen on Czech rails.
Loco Hauled Passengers
460 photos
updated : 2020-11-26
Most long distance passengers are still loco hauled and it's also possible to find locos on local services on the electrified network, although the number of EMUs is increasing. Diesel haulage is largely restricted to a few routes with heavy traffic levels or working through coaches on long distance routes.
Multi System Electrics
44 photos
updated : 2020-11-26
Czechoslovakia electrified much of its network at 3000V DC before switching to 25kV AC in the late 1960s. Some routes involve both voltages and dual system designs were introduced from the 1970s. More recently standard multi-system designs from Siemens and Bombardier have also been used.
The Czech Republic, a.k.a. Czechia, is a small country full of railway interest, with an attractive landscape, a variety of traction and, at one time, an almost infinite multiplicity of liveries. Sadly, modernisation is now taking its toll, making the railway more efficient and less interesting every year.
