České dráhy (ČD) has installed on-board ETCS technology in 422 of its vehicles and installation work is underway on 750 class locomotives as well as on RegioSpider and RegioShark diesel multiple units, 660 / 661 class InterPanter electric multiple units, first-generation RegioPanters and 471 class CityElefant suburban electric multiple units. All new vehicles which České dráhy is acquiring, such as RegioFox diesel multiple units, second-generation RegioPanters and modern Vectron locomotives, already have the ETCS on-board unit installed directly from the factory.
The Czech rail passenger operator is also intensively working on preparation for the launching of exclusive operation under the ETCS system on selected corridor lines as of 1 January 2025. The trains of České dráhy have been running for many months under the supervision of the European Train Control System on the sections determined by the Rail Authority.
By the end of this year, the company plans to take over 44 new vehicles with the ETCS installed and to retrofit another 54 vehicles from the existing rolling stock.
This means that as of 1 January 2025, approximately 520 vehicles and units will have on-board ETCS technology installed and will be prepared to enter operation with the new system. The rolling stock which has now installed the system and it is in operation comprises the 162 WTB, 362 and 362 WTB class locomotives.
Starting August 1st, “a binding instruction of the Rail Authority has been in force, which obliges carriers to run on selected line sections with the ETCS system activated on the board of trains if the vehicle is equipped with an active mobile part of the ETCS system and the driver is properly trained,” explained Jiří Ješeta, Member of the Board of Directors and Deputy Director General of České dráhy for Passenger Transport.
According to his statement, ČD’s trains equipped with ETCS have already travelled several thousand kilometres on main rail lines and connections including “from the Slovak and Polish borders via Bohumín to Břeclav, from Břeclav via Brno to Česká Třebová, from Přerov via Česká Třebová to Prague or from Beroun via Plzeň to Cheb. Moreover, we are the only train carrier in the Czech Republic to operate under the exclusive ETCS operation on the railway line from Uničov to Olomouc.”
Intensive training of drivers focused on operation of the ETCS-equipped vehicles also continues. More than 750 drivers have already undergone these training courses at České dráhy, and more are now in the induction process.
According to Správa železnic there are more trains on the Czech railway network that run under the supervision of the European ETCS. Since the beginning of August, it has been used by carriers who meet the required conditions on routes where exclusive ETCS operation will be introduced from January next year.
From August 1, carriers are obliged to drive under ETCS on lines that are already equipped with this system, if they use a vehicle equipped with the relevant on-board unit and are driven by a suitably trained driver. Thus, in the first week of August, a total of 4,480 trains ran under the supervision of ETCS. Compared to the first week of July, this represents an increase of 961 trains.
The planned introduction of exclusive operation under the supervision of a single European security system will take place gradually over four weeks in January next year. In total, it will be used on 622 km of the most important tracks in the Czech Republic.
Starting January 2025, the exclusive ETCS operation will begin on the following routes:
Česká Třebová – Olomouc – Dluhonice – Prosenice/Přerov;
Břeclav – Bohumín;
Česká Třebová – Adamov, Modřice – Břeclav; and
Prague-Běchovice – Pardubice – Česká Třebová
More than 1,000 train drivers must be trained and the knowledge of the system will also be needed for the 500 dispatchers from central workplaces in Prague and Přerov and for emergency dispatchers who will be ready to manage traffic directly in the stations.
After the launch of the exclusive ETCS operation on the main lines, 50,000 trains will run monthly under the supervision of the European safety regulator. In terms of kilometers travelled and tons of goods transported, this will represent 42% of all operational performance on the entire network of the Czech Republic.
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