Railway line Martinice v Krkonoších – Rokytnice nad Jizerou

Martinice v Krkonoších – Rokytnice nad Jizerou
Course book series (SŽDC) :	042
Route length:	20.193 km
Gauge :	1435 mm ( standard gauge )
Route class :	A1
Maximum slope :	23.0  ‰
Top speed:	50 km / h
Legend from Trutnov-Poříčí (formerly ÖNWB ) 0.000 Martinice v Krkonoších formerly Starkenbach-Martinitz 485 m to Velký Osek (formerly ÖNWB ) 3.623 Jilemnice formerly Starkenbach 465 m 6.038 Hrabačov 430 m vlečka Devro sro 7.357 Víchová nad Jizerou 410 m Jizera (160 m) 9.171 Horní Sytová formerly Sittau-Haje 390 m 10.600 former protectorate border (1938–1945) 11.179 Poniklá formerly Přivlak-Ponikla 400 m 13,800 Poniklá zastávka 415 m (formerly projected tunnel, designed as a cut) Jizera 15.453 Hradský (118 m) 15.780 Jablonec nad Jizerou-Hradsko formerly Hradsko 435 m Jizera 18.508 Jablonec nad Jizerou formerly Jablonetz 445 m Jizera 20.193 Rokytnice nad Jizerou formerly Rochlitz an der Iser 455 m 20,460 (End of route)

The railway line Martinice v Krkonoších – Rokytnice nad Jizerou is a regional railway connection in the Czech Republic , which was originally built and operated as a nationally guaranteed local line Starkenbach – Rochlitz (Czech: Místní dráha Jilemnice – Rokytnice nad Jizerou ). It branches in Martinice ( Martinitz ) from the railway Velký Osek-Trutnov and leads at the foot of the Giant Mountains in the Jizera valley on Jilemnice ( Starkenbach ) and Jablonec nad Jizerou ( Jablonetz ) to Rokytnice nad Jizerou ( Rochlitz on the Iser ).

According to a decree of the Czech government, the line has been classified as a regional railway ("regionální dráha") since December 20, 1995.

history

The concession " to build and operate a standard-gauge local train from the Starkenbach station of the kk priv. Österreichische Nordwestbahn via Privlak and Jablonetz to Rochlitz with a possible continuation to Grünthal (Oberpolaun) to connect to the projected local train Tannwald border and to Neuwelt " were given to Count Johann von Harrach, landowner in Starkenbach, together with Joseph Haney, manufacturer in Niederrochlitz, Theodor Hübner, authorized signatory in Jablonetz, Franz Jerie, mayor and Johann Zubaty, district chairman in Starkenbach on August 29, 1898. Part of the concession was the Commitment to start construction of the line immediately and to finish it within two and a half years. The duration of the concession was set at 90 years. The approval for the (unrealized) extension of the line to Grünthal or Neuwelt was limited to five years from the granting of the license.

Ordinary share at 200 kroner of the local railway Starkenbach-Rochlitz

The share capital of Localbahn Starkenbach – Rochlitz, which was founded on October 19, 1899, totaled 4,880,000 crowns in 4,000 ordinary shares at 200 crowns each and 20,400 priority shares at 200 crowns each. The seat of the company was in Vienna. The shares were bought by local manufacturers, the savings bank and the Starkenbach district .

The Viennese company Gross & Comp. commissioned, which began on October 10, 1898 with the work on the line. The project finally envisaged a 20.3-kilometer route with a maximum gradient of 23 per thousand and a minimum arc radius of 180 meters. Despite the fact that the route was mostly routed in valleys, the construction involved a lot of effort. On longer sections, the space for the route on the banks of the Iser had to be laboriously created through rock blasting, embankments and the relocation of the water. Initially, two tunnels were planned, of which only one was built with a length of 118 meters. Instead of the second one, an incision was made. At times, 2000 workers were employed on the construction site, mainly Italians, Serbs, Croats and Slovaks. On November 6, 1899, a work train traveled the entire route for the first time. The technical inspection by the police took place on November 27, 1899.

Starkenbach Stadt / Jilemnice město station, presumably when the line opened in 1899

The 160 meter long four-span bridge over the Jizera near Horní Sytová is the railway's largest engineering structure. (around 1910)

On December 7, 1899, the line was opened for public transport. The kk Staatsbahndirektion Prague took over the management for the account of the owners . The first timetable of the local railway showed three mixed pairs of 2nd and 3rd class trains over the entire route. Another only ran between Starkenbach and Starkenbach Stadt. The travel time for the entire route was between 85 and 117 minutes, which was mainly due to the maneuvering stops at the intermediate stations. Later, pure passenger trains also ran, which only took 44 minutes. From July 15, 1900, postal traffic was also handled by the local railway.

After the nationalization of the kk priv. Österreichische Nordwestbahn (ÖNWB) in October 1909, management was transferred to what is now the kk Nordwestbahndirektion, based in Vienna. After the First World War , the newly founded Czechoslovak State Railways (ČSD) took the place of the Northwest Railway Directorate. In the operation of ČSD, the timetable was gradually compressed. The winter timetable 1937/38, valid from October 3, 1937, recorded six pairs of passenger trains over the entire route, as well as another three pairs of trains between Martinice and Jilemnice.

Until 1936, the Czechoslovak state acquired the majority of the shares in the local railway company Starkenbach – Rochlitz , but the local railway company was not dissolved.

After the annexation of the Sudetenland to Germany in October 1938, part of the route from route kilometer 10.6 was now on German territory. Since there was no direct connection to other German routes, the entire route remained in operation of the now Protectorate Railways Bohemia and Moravia (ČMD-BMB). Pschiwiak-Ponikla (today: Poniklá) was designated as the border station with passport and customs control. Initially only three pairs of trains crossed the new state border, all others only ran to Sittau-Haje / Sytová-Haje or Starkenbach / Jilemnice.

After the Second World War, the local railway company , which last operated as the Starkenbach – Rochlitz (Iser) or Místní dráha Jilemnice – Rochlitz (Iser) local railway company, was dissolved and the line was finally integrated into the ČSD network. An exact date for this process is unknown.

Passenger train near Horní Sytová (1999)

The ČSD resumed travel in 1945 with six pairs of passenger trains to Rokytnice and four pairs of passenger trains to Jilemnice. An increasing demand for traffic in tourism - Rokytnice developed into one of the tourist centers of the Giant Mountains, especially after 1945 - and also in daily commuter traffic ultimately led to a steady increase in the timetable. In the 1975 timetable, twelve pairs of passenger trains ran on weekdays, supplemented by a further six trains to Jilemnice. Since 1950, most passenger trains have been run as motorized trains.

On January 1, 1993, as a result of the dissolution of Czechoslovakia, the line was transferred to the newly founded Czech state railway company České dráhy (ČD). Since 2003 it has been part of the network of the state infrastructure operator Správa železniční dopravní cesty (SŽDC).

In the years after the Velvet Revolution , the line had the densest passenger train schedule in its history. In the 2003 annual timetable, passenger trains ran between Martinice and Jilemnice every hour, and beyond that to the end point in Rokytnice every two hours with repeater services during rush hour. A total of nine pairs of passenger trains ran to Rokytnice and another eight to Jilemnice on weekdays.

Local freight train (“Manipulak”) at the entrance to Jilemnice. The train mainly carries wagons with raw wood from the forests of the Giant Mountains. (2016)

In December 1999 the centenary of the opening of the route was celebrated. Some special trains ran with steam locomotives.

Changed travel habits and the relocation of local public transport to the parallel bus lines led to a steady thinning of the timetable in the following years. In the 2008 timetable, most journeys ended in Jablonec, with only two pairs of trains running to the end point in Rokytnice. The shuttle trips to Jilemnice were canceled, but there was still a two-hour cycle with amplifier power until Jablonec. A total of 15 pairs of passenger trains ran on weekdays. Some of the trains were tied to and from Jaroměř .

Passenger trains have been running every two hours to Jablonec since 2009, and no amplifier services have been used. Since then, only one pair of trains has reached the end point Rokytnice on weekends and holidays. Efforts to completely relocate the traffic to the parallel bus lines on the part of the transport authority IDOL have so far been rejected by the neighboring communities in spite of possible denser cycle times. In freight transport, the route is still important in the removal of raw wood and in the service of local industrial companies.

Vehicle use

Nowadays, single-unit railcars of the ČD series 810 are sufficient for low passenger traffic . Freight trains are run by ČD class 842 diesel locomotives . (Jilemnice station, 2014)

The local railway Starkenbach – Rochlitz acquired three tank locomotives from Wiener Neustädter Lokomotivfabrik , which were largely identical to the locomotives of the series XV of the ÖNWB. It was a triple-coupled, powerful type that had already proven itself on various steep local railways in the operation of the ÖNWB. At the kkStB they were initially given the numbers 62.21 to 62.23. After taking over the ÖNWB locomotives in 1909, they were run together with them as the kkStB series 162. The ČSD gave them the numbers 313.420 to 313.422 in 1925. They were only retired after the Second World War.

In addition to the locomotives, the local railway had 14 passenger cars, five company cars and 24 freight cars of various types in its portfolio when it opened.

Today, the railcars of the 810 series are exclusively used for travel , freight trains are hauled by ČD series 842 diesel locomotives.

literature

• Jan Luštinec, Petr Luštinec, Jaroslav Křenek: History místní dráhy Martinice v Krkonoších - Jilemnice - Rokytnice nad Jizerou , Růžolící chrochtík, 2004; ISBN 80-903346-2-8
• Pavel Blatník: Počátky lokální železniční dopravy v severovýchodních Čechách. , Klika, Praha 2017; ISBN 978-80-87373-74-3 ; Pp. 69-76
• Václav Haas: 100 let trati Tanvald - Kořenov - Harrachov. SAXI, Prague 2002; without ISBN, pp. 7–8

Web links

Commons : Railway line 042 (Czech Republic)  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• Martinice v Krkonoších – Rokytnice nad Jizerou on www.zelpage.cz

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Zdeněk Hudec u. a .: Atlas drah České republiky 2006–2007 , 2nd edition; Publishing house Pavel Malkus, Praha, 2006, ISBN 80-87047-00-1
2. ↑ Prohlášení o dráze 2020
3. ↑ Decree of the Czech government of December 20, 1995
4. ^ Reichsgesetzblatt for the kingdoms and states represented in the Reichsrathe, No. 166 of September 20, 1898
5. ↑ data on geerkens.at
6. ↑ Timetable 1900 of the ÖNWB
7. ↑ 1912 timetable of the kkStB
8. ↑ ČSD winter timetable 1937/38 - valid from October 3, 1937
9. ↑ Timetable 1940
10. ↑ Timetable 1944